


Little Hero Academia

by Terran117



Category: Little Witch Academia, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Comedy, Coming of Age, Crossover, Crossover Pairings, F/M, Falling In Love, Gen, Mild Sexual Content, Mild Smut, Other, Romance, Stealth Crossover
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-08
Updated: 2019-07-28
Packaged: 2019-09-13 22:57:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 18
Words: 88,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16901403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Terran117/pseuds/Terran117
Summary: On their way to Britain to train with its Special Forces for a month, a gross misunderstanding instead sees Deku, Todoroki, and Bakugou forced into Luna Nova's first ever cross magical and hero training course. Because of her role in the incident, Akko is also inducted as their guide for their month in Luna Nova alongside a reluctant Diana and an Amanda eager for some ribbing.Tensions still run among the world of magic and the world of heroes, however. Thus, Deku and Akko hope to use this program and the various experiments it will entail to prove to the world that magic is still relevant and can exist in a world dominated by quirks. Intrigue, discovery, rivalry and perhaps an unholy meeting of minds ensue.





	1. Airborne

**Author's Note:**

> (The MHA characters are somewhere before the provisional license exam arc and after the Bakugou rescue mission. It follows the anime adaptation for what its worth. The LWA characters meanwhile are in the OVA timeline and all it entails, specifically a few months after the events of the Enchanted Parade.)

“ _And that concludes our in-flight announcement passengers. Oh, and would the three foreign exchange students kindly calm down?_ ” blazed the intercoms of the airplane.

 

“He’s talking about you two,” muttered Todoroki, gazing outside the airplane’s window.

 

“Well how am I supposed to keep quiet when Deku won’t stop running his stupid little mouth!” yelled Bakugou, angry at the fact that he had to sit between the window and aisle while also having to travel alongside Deku for an extended period of time.

 

“I’m sorry!” squealed Midoriya, otherwise known as Deku, shaking his head back and forth in a typical fanboy manner.

 

Deku tried to string his words together. “It’s just that, we’re almost gonna be training with the Special Air Service for a whole month! They’re Britain’s greatest soldiers and they have the best training program for operators with quirks! Can you believe it? We’re only in high school and they...”

 

“I got it the first time! Shut up already!” roared Bakugou. “And besides, these special forces guys are just walking corpses. Their numbers are getting smaller while heroes get bigger.”

 

“You didn’t have to come along you know,” noted Todoroki.

 

It was almost as if Bakugou’s pupils suddenly vanished as he grabbed Todoroki by the arm. “Hey! If these assholes are only looking for the best then I gotta show them they made a mistake by thinking I’m on Deku’s level.”

 

Deku gulped, and the reactions from the passengers didn’t help either. For the duration of their flight, Deku would drone on about something he learned about Britain’s forces, which caused Bakugou to yell back at him, which in turn forced Todoroki to defuse the situation, only to anger Bakugou further. The three had been repeating this cycle for quite a while, to say the least.

 

Had they not been a quarter famous for their quirks, they would have probably been thrown out the airplane by now.

 

“And I’m sure we’re gonna have a great time,” added Deku with a nervous smile. “We get to go train at Hereford Base for a whole month! I heard they’ve got operators who can turn their fists into mallets, shoot out toxic smoke and disable all things electric with the blink of an eye.”

 

“Maybe we should’ve brought Kaminari then.” mused Todoroki, actually cracking a small gin.

 

Bakugou just hissed, which was the greatest thing the passengers could hope for. Deku and Todoroki knew that Bakugou would have probably preferred to stay in Japan rather than in Britain, but he just had to prove himself better than his classmates if he had been put on the same footing as them by another observer.

 

Deku focused his attention back to his history book on the SAS, from their activation in 1941 to the modern day dilemma of heroes versus traditional armies. The special forces in every nation had adapted the easiest to the changing times and were now almost entirely made up of those who had extraordinary quirks. Japan meanwhile, had all but gotten rid of their SDF in favor of full-time professional heroes.

 

Just as a few minutes of golden silence ensued, a sudden shock disturbed the plane.

 

“ _Sorry about that passengers, we seem to have hit a little surprise turbulence, but nothing serious._ ” noted the pilot on the intercom.

 

A few more seconds passed of Bakugou glaring, Deku reading, and Todoroki brooding, before the gang was approached by a rushing flight attendant whose name tag read Angie. The three thought they were done for given the noises they caused on the plane, but she didn’t seem to be in the scolding mood.

 

“Excuse me,” called out Angie, taking a deep breath to calm herself. “We are arriving at your destination.”

 

“Wait, what?” frowned Deku. That information would be something the pilot would announce to the whole plane.

 

“You mean the airport?” asked Todoroki.

 

“I mean the base you three exchange students are going to be training at of course.” chuckled Angie.

 

Todoroki raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure about that?”

 

Angie nodded.

 

“But we’re nowhere near Hereford base!” noted Deku, pointing to a map. “We gotta make a transition first, so we should still be in..”

 

Deku was cut off by Angie. “Yes, we were surprised by this too, but our radar indicates that we are above the pickup point, so we must have had an error in our navigator.”

 

Angie clasped her hands. “Now then, we need you to get up so we can drop you off.”

 

Bakugou’s mouth dropped. “Um, I don’t know if you’ve noticed lady but we’re still miles off the ground.”

 

Angie sighed. “Yes, I can see that. We were supposed to brief you on this at the airport during your connection flight as a surprise, but that was when we counted on our faulty navigator. Now, come follow me.”

 

The trio reluctantly got up and reached for their carry-ons.

 

“Oh don’t worry about those,” assured Angie. “We’ll tie some parachutes alongside your luggage for the big drop.”

 

Now everyone at the plane was staring.

 

“Big drop?” gulped Deku.

 

“Mhm,” smiled Angie. “The SAS planned for you to airdrop onto their base for a test of some sort. Our plan was to drop you all off on our return flight when there were no passengers beside you on board, but we appeared to have accidentally entered their airspace.”

 

Another flight attendant was carrying over 3 bags which the trio immediately figured out were parachutes.

 

“We’re actually going to skydive to Hereford?” checked Todoroki.

 

“Yep, just like the SAS! Once I open the emergency exit you three are jumping out of here with your luggage!” confirmed Angie.

 

The three heroes were frozen in shock.

 

“There must be some other way! This is crazy!” noted Deku. He did technically have experience being high up in the air, but not like this.

 

“Come on Deku, if these assholes think we can’t do it then they wouldn’t have even asked,” argued Bakugou, grabbing a parachute from the other flight attendant.

 

“Besides, it is very illegal for us to enter SAS airspace unless it is about dropping you all off so you need to hurry before the airline lands in serious trouble,” added Angie.

 

“Well, I’d hate to cause an international incident,” shrugged Todoroki. Truth be told it was the least worrisome thing he would have to do in a while compared to previous incidents.

 

Deku put on his brave face. “Right, but isn’t this kinda dangerous with all the civilians around? Why didn’t we use an army plane or something?”

 

Angie laughed. “Well, the SAS wanted to test your ability to act in unorthodox situations where you’re thrust into the middle of military operations with little preparing, so they contacted our airline for assistance. We’ve already planned for the scenario if we had to drop you off with civilians on board, so don’t worry.”

 

“And how did you plan for that?” checked Bakugou.

 

“Why, my quirk is to keep an enclosed area pressurized. No one is flying out on my watch!” winked Angie.

 

“Alright, let’s do it,” gave in Deku, grabbing his parachute and putting it on as instructed.

 

“Now remember, the SAS are planning something for you when you land, so don’t expect a normal drop,” shrugged Angie.

 

“Nothing about this is normal,” whispered Deku under his breath.

 

Angie’s body glowed a bright pink and as did the rest of the plane’s interior, clearly the work of her quirk. They couldn’t feel a difference just yet, however.

 

Another flight attendant opened the door and the roaring noise of the winds flooded everyone’s ears. However, nothing went flying, nobody budged from their seats or reported any discomfort, indicating that Angie’s quirk was working as intended.

 

“Suitcases first!” yelled another flight attendant, and the rest of the team began throwing out the trio’s belongings in a speedy fashion. As they had parachutes attached to them too, no one had to worry about damaged items and lawsuits over that.

 

Todoroki looked out the window and bit his lip. “This really is it huh?”

 

Deku began gritting his teeth and nervously laughed. “Come on everyone, there’s gotta be a more reasonable way to…”

 

“Outta my way you damn nerd!” growled Bakugou, who assessed the drop for just a moment before he jumped out.

 

“Kaachan! Wait!” yelled Deku, who without thinking proceeded to jump out himself in an effort to catch up.

 

Todoroki sighed and followed them down too.

 

Once he jumped out, the three top students of Class 1A were all officially on their journey down to Hereford base to begin SAS training. Or so they thought.

 

On the plane, Angie closed the door and finally deactivated her quirk, the plane continuing on as if nobody had jumped off in the first place.

 

The voice of the pilot blared on the intercom once more. “ _Ladies and gentlemen I am pleased to announce that the three annoyances are out of the plane and are the problem of the British Special Forces now.”_

 

The passengers of the plane cheered in delight, before quieting down to enjoy a quiet flight without Deku or Bakugou yelling at each other and Todoroki accidentally making it worse.

 

-

 

Deku’s eyes watered as he plummeted down. He had jumped from extreme heights before but doing it out of an airplane was another issue. As he saw Bakugou and Todoroki falling with him, he began to think of the situation at hand, or at least tried to given the rush of events.

 

For starters, the three of them weren’t completely in danger of death even if their parachutes failed. Bakugou knew how to orient himself in the air with his explosions. Even if the wind wiped all of his sweat, Todoroki could similarly use his flames or ice powers to ease their way down. Deku himself could also use the force from his One for All Quirk to propel himself up in the air before hitting the ground.

 

Those were risky moves, and also still a last resort if their parachutes failed. Deku reasoned the SAS wouldn’t let them die early and that parachuting from a plane was designed to be the least troublesome activity they would accomplish during their time at Hereford.

 

And speaking of Hereford, Deku took a good look and what was below. Rather than a high tech military base with airplanes, tanks or helicopters lying about, he was looking at what appeared to be a castle, which he knew Britain was full of, but didn’t look like a training facility.

 

“GUYS!” yelled Deku.

 

“What is it now pipsqueak!” roared Bakugou, staring down at the landing zone.

 

“I didn’t hear anything about a castle at Hereford! I don’t think this is right!” screamed Deku, fighting back the tears in his eyes from shock.

 

Todoroki himself glanced down. “I’m with Deku on this one, that castle down below doesn’t scream military to me,”

 

“You idiots!” growled Bakugou. “British special forces dorks probably think they’re royalty! Of course these assholes get castle!”

 

Deku doubted it, but it did make sense that a group as elite as the SAS would probably have a castle of some sort for quirk based students. It just screamed British. Or maybe it was just a mock-up given that the three were apparently supposed to complete a test while parachuting or landing. Perhaps the real base was a short walk away.

 

Just before anyone else could make a comment, the three were suddenly jerked in the air for a moment as their parachutes automatically deployed, which at least saved them the trouble of figuring out when they should have activated them.

 

“So what’s the plan from here?” asked Deku, finally calming down.

 

“I think it’s a little easier to think while parachuting, but I don’t know,” said Todoroki, trying to get a good view of what was under his feet.

 

“What are you talking about? All we gotta do is find out what those special forces assholes want to challenge us with and get over it,” muttered Bakugou.

 

“What do you think that could be?” asked Deku.

 

“It’s probably an obstacle course. I figure that’s what castle is for. I wouldn’t be surprised if they used live bullets and working machines though.” guessed Todoroki.

 

That answer made sense to the three heroes. Para-dropping unprepared and surviving in hostile territory sounded like a cliche elite operator set up. Their whole drop from a civilian airliner also sounded like it was out of a movie the more Deku thought about it.

 

“Hey, do you guys see people on that castle?” remarked  Deku as he squinted his eyes while looking down. He made out several blobs on a platform that was directly under them and where it seemed they were supposed to land.

 

“Can’t tell from here, but it looks like it.” agreed Todoroki, making out several figures.

 

“Looks like they’re wearing blue, so those jerks think they’re gonna ambush us when we land,” added Bakugou.

 

Right when everyone thought they were in for a pre-rumble with Britain’s elite the three would have their supposedly real task laid before them.

 

The three heroes heard a large whooshing noise coming from above. They quickly glanced up and were shocked at the sight before them.

 

Multiple red creatures, each with wings and horns, which could only be classified as demons. Roaring, devilish, and fierce looking demons.

 

And they were heading straight at them.

 

“What-what-what are those?” cried Deku.

 

“That’s one tricked out quirk.” gasped Todoroki, wondering if it was an unreasonable number of people with the same quirk or a sort of projection. He also thought if they were mock-up robots.

 

Bakugou grinned. “Now that is the kind of training I like!”

 

Deku gritted his teeth as the entities roared and approached them. “Kaachan! We don’t even have a plan.”

 

“Oh come on Deku! If I was running a stupid boot camp I’d put my jarheads into the grinder first thing and see what they can do without a plan!” roared Bakugou.

 

Todoroki wanted to make a snide comment against Bakugou, but was too busy preparing his ice powers to face the demons. He didn’t know how they weren’t spotted before or what was the extent of the quirk they were facing, but he wasn’t about to take any risks.

 

Deku meanwhile was the most limited in terms of combat range. He could only helplessly watch as the demons soared towards him and charge up a part of his arm to smash them if he could. At the rate they were flying at though and with the obstruction from his parachute, it was not an ideal situation for his quirk.

 

Bakugou of course was preparing his explosions, but even he had to seem a bit of trouble keeping the sweat on his palms with all the wind wiping it away. Still, nothing could break his bloodthirsty smile.

 

As demons got closer and closer, the boys prepared to unleash everything they had. Their hearts raced with excitement at the prospect of this unique and difficult situation. This was their first chance to prove themselves to the special forces, and they weren’t about to mess it up.

 

Right as the closest demon got into range, however, it did the unexpected.

 

Ignore the three heroes and just fly completely straight down.

 

The rest followed it down.

 

Bakugou looked below his feet to see the demons swooping down towards the castle. His mouth was agape, angry at being denied the fight that looked so promising.

 

“What the hell, these are the worst demons ever!” screamed Bakugou.

 

Deku who had sighed with relief tried to reassure him. “C’mon maybe we’re supposed to face them on the ground so the SAS can watch us properly.”

 

“I think it would have made more sense to attack us while we were parachuting since we’re more vulnerable like that.” inferred Todoroki.

 

“Uh, baby steps?” shrugged Deku.

 

Todoroki raised an eyebrow as he watched the demons fly down. “They seem to be heading to some sort of raised platform. I think we need to para-drop there instead of the ground.”

 

“That’s what I figured, and I think I can see our luggage heading there too,” noted Deku, especially noticing how all their suitcases conveniently appeared to be heading straight for the platform too. He wondered if the people using their demon quirk were chasing their belongings, but that didn’t make sense and the demons just then zoomed passed the luggage as well.

 

“Well I ain’t letting those red freaks ignore me anyway!” declared Bakugou.

 

“And there’s a lot of freaks,” noted Todoroki, glancing at a large number of demons that were encircling a raised platform and blocking off most of the view. Getting closer didn’t seem to give anyone more clarity.

 

“I swear they’re probably just projections or androids,” insisted Deku. “Never seen this many people with the same quirk at once before, especially a demon one.”

 

“How flattering! They’re either letting us in on a secret quirk or summoned Satan’s spawn from hell just for us!” grinned Bakugou.

 

The nature of the demons aside, the landing would still be an issue. As they each thought of their own separate plans, it was just then that the boys heard what appeared to be a high pitched scream.

 

Deku tried to analyze what was happening, but the demons were so high in number that all he could see was red. He tried to recall the figures he saw on the platform, who didn’t seem to be operators now given that they were the ones certainly screaming in a rather high pitched voice.

 

“Any idea what that was?” asked Todoroki.

 

“Oh great,” winced Bakugou, impatient at the long time it was taking to land. “These dorks have a rescue mission planned for us.”


	2. Akko's Inferno

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the students of UA High head legs first into their misadventure, Akko and her classmates prepare for a surprise lesson.

Akko’s classmates headed up the staircase, ready for their next lesson. The young witch was beaming with excitement once she learned what the subject for today was since she felt that it was just right to help her on her quest to restore the popularity of magic in the world.

 

Not to mention she had a major boost of confidence over the last month after narrowly avoiding getting expelled thanks to a successful, but rather hectic, Witch Parade that showed all the witnesses what a wonder magic could be. Still, Akko knew she was just a hair away from having her pretty little face expelled if she screwed up too much, but word on the street was that anything she and her friends did to solve the problem tended to have some long-term gains.

 

Akko felt Amanda grab her by the shoulder, the same haughty smile on her face.

 

“Excited aren’t ya?” teased Amanda.

 

“Of course I am! I always wanted to learn how to write my name and draw a bunch of stuff in the sky with magic. That’s the first step if you wanna an impress an audience in your magic shows.” beamed Akko.

 

“It would have come in real handy during the parade though,” added Lotte, walking behind them.

 

Lotte popped up and threw her hat into the ring. “Yeah, I could’ve told everyone in town the juiciest and darkest secrets I know without anyone stopping me, and maybe even people from the next town over could see it and have it burned into their brain.”

 

“If only you used your powers for good.” sighed Akko.

 

“You should remind yourself that more often too,” muttered Diana, who was walking in front of the other students. While she did come off as stern, Akko knew that deep down she really did want the best for everyone.

 

Ursula, the professor leading the group, clasped her hands and looked back at her students with excitement.

 

“So, who is ready for putting on their first magical light show?” asked Ursula, with audible excitement in her voice. She was normally the magical astronomy teacher, but her regular class would be not taking place this day for a special lesson instead.

 

“Yay!” was all Akko could cheer, given the nature of the magic and its connection to her idol Shiny Chariot, a performer who would put on the most spectacular of all shows. If Akko wished to show a world dominated by technology and hero quirks that magic was still a wonder, being able to entertain everyone with it would be a crucial step.

 

“Last time I checked, aren’t light shows supposed to happen at night?” spoke up Sucy.

 

Ursula adjusted her glasses and looked forward again. “That is right, but being able to conjure up an easily visible light show in daytime makes performing it at night all the easier. Once you get that part over, all that really limits you with this kind of magic is your imagination.”

 

Akko shot up her fists in the air. “This is gonna be so exciting. I’m gonna be just like Shiny Chariot. I’ll write my name in the sky, then make holograms of flying whales or even more holograms of me.”

 

“The world has enough of you.” teased Sucy.

 

“Well I’d like to see you perform,” encouraged Lotte. “After we put up the Parade of the Witch Hunt, I think it wouldn’t hurt to put on another performance.”

 

“Yay!” exclaimed Akko, in a slightly more hyper tone the more she visualized her goal. “But maybe fewer giants and trolls coming to life then next time.”

 

Ursula called out to her students once more. “We are here everyone!”

 

The witches got up to the raised platform, sunlight beaming on their faces.

 

“Here we are!” cheered Ursula. “While my realm of expertise mostly deals with the night, I’m gonna show you all something really amazing that all witches...and wizards I guess, should know!”

 

Akko could barely contain her excitement, practically skipping in place. The rest of the class didn’t have the same appreciation for performers like Shiny Chariot, viewing them as those who exploited and desecrated the art of magic for cheap attention. Akko, on the other hand, believed that with so many people exploiting their works for heroism or performances, Witches and Wizards had to make their existence to the world loud and proud instead of remaining secluded and dull.

 

“So, does anyone know what light manipulation can be used for?” asked Ursula.

 

Diana raised her hand and was called on. “You can use it to alert others of your position in dire situations.”

 

“Correct,” nodded Ursula. “Jasminka, you have your hand up.”

 

“You can use it to draw pictures of your favorite snacks,” answered Jasminka.

 

“True I suppose.” laughed Ursula.

 

Akko raised her hand up, only for Hannah and Barbara, hands raised to quickly sidestep in front of her, blocking Akko from Ursula’s view.

 

“Yes, Barbara.” picked Ursula.

 

“I heard you can use it to write your name in the sky,” said Barbara, knowing exactly that was what Akko was going to say given her earlier outbursts.

 

“And even make cool holograms which I heard goes great with magical performances,” smirked Hannah.

 

Akko pouted at having her thunder stolen.

 

Ursula clasped her hands. “Okay then! First, we’re going to focus on making your light projections visible in daylight so that you’ll be used to doing them at night when you’d need them more. After some practice, you should be able to at least come up with something just like you see in a magic show or coming straight from a pre-enchanted firework.”

 

Ursula got out her wand. “Okay, now the first thing you need to do is say the words Lux and then Ire Ultra. Make sure you leave a space and have your wand pointed upwards.”

 

With a flick of her wand up, Ursula said the magic words and a visible red light emitted from it.

 

The class gasped with interest. It was a pretty bright day out, so being able to see something like that was impressive.

 

Ursula smiled at her accomplishment and revealed in her compliments before continuing her lecture. “Now I should tell you all that while it seems to be rather simple, it takes a lot of strength to manipulate light and make it visible, especially in daytime which is why we’re doing it now. And let’s just say it’ll take a week before you can even write down your name, and a year to make simple moving holograms.”

 

Just when the class seemed discouraged, Ursula grinned widely. “But the best part is that most of this spell is limited only by your sheer imagination and will. If you keep practicing, you’ll be able to cast great illusions SILENTLY! Like a real performer. Maybe you’ll start getting calls for magic shows!”

 

The class noted that Ursula looked strangely excited and her expression looked like she was remembering something fondly, or was envisioning getting rich off her students’ fame.

 

Akko smiled brightly with a little happy skip, imagining herself in Shiny Chariot’s role. There she would be in some great city like Las Vegas, Rio De Janeiro or even back home in Tokyo creating magical sea creatures or birds out of colorful lights for entertaining the masses.

 

Ursula cleared throat. “Okay, so let’s start practicing now. Since you’re all ahead on Astronomy, we should be able to do this a few more times in the coming weeks.”

 

The students got out their wands, but Ursula was quickly reminded of something important and stopped them in their tracks.

 

“Oh yes!” she yelled. “While it’s not likely, can you please not think of anything that might get us in trouble with the government and my bosses since there’s a good chance your spells are going to be visible from a good distance. So nothing disturbing or offensive!”

 

“You heard her Sucy.” snarked Akko, but Sucy paid her no mind and was surely planning her revenge for that quip, which made Akko regret that remark.

 

For the next 15 minutes, the students began chanting the incantation, with not much appearing from their wands. Ursula assured everyone they were saying the spell right, and needed to concentrate on harnessing the power of light and their imagination to make a beam appear.

 

Finally, Diana, of course, was able to get a faint blue light emitting from her wand. A very thin light, but if you placed your hand over the wand you could clearly see the blue dot as if the wand turned into a laser pointer.

 

Sure enough, at the half hour mark everyone was able to produce thin visible light beams, which Ursula noted would be useful in signalling a witches position in a time of distress. Constanze meanwhile had seemingly produced a large fire blue beam from her wand, only to be reprimanded by Ursula for having used a laser amplifier device she had constructed.

 

Amanda and Diana however, had finally been able to produce tiny shapes from their wands which floated up in the air for five seconds before disappearing. It didn’t take long before their practice turned into a competition.

 

Akko meanwhile, struggled to produce even a faint beam.

 

“Come on you stupid thing!” pouted Akko at her wand. “Lux Ire Ultra! Lux Ire Ultra!”

 

“You’re supposed to pause between Lux and Ire Ultra!” instructed Ursula. “They’re supposed to be two separate sentences.”

Akko took a deep breath. She had been doing exactly that for the first few minutes, but it was to no avail. As everyone else was producing more results, she had gotten increasingly impatient with the lack of progress.

 

She gave it another shot. “Lux. Ire Ultra!”

 

And nothing.

 

“What the heck is going on?” frowned Akko, staring at her wand, which she noticed had been pulsing a shade of bright blue, even though nothing was emitting from it.

 

Akko gave the wand a good shake in desperation, but it did nothing of course.

 

Diana raised an eyebrow. “Hey, that pulsing on your wand looks out of ordinary.”

 

Ursula’s attention returned to Akko. She adjusted her glasses and took a closer look at her wand, crouching down as she stared, before biting her lip.

 

Ursula stood back up and relayed the situation. “It seems your wand has a case of magical back up at the moment.”

 

“Magical backup?” asked Akko.

 

“Basically it’s an ultra-rare situation where your spells aren’t discharging from your wand, but are instead charging it up with more and more energy for each spell that doesn’t go through,” explained Ursula.

 

Akko’s pupils shrunk. “So my wand is now a ticking time bomb.”

 

Ursula shrugged. “Not really, since it takes about half an hour for the effects to wear off, BUT that means whatever spell you cast from that wand is going to be extra powerful when it starts working again, so we need to make sure that it’s really harmless. You get that?”

 

Akko sighed. “I do.”

 

Akko’s disappointment quickly turned to anger, swinging around the wand and causing distress to Ursula. “Stupid thing though! I’m about to finally cast one of the spells I really wanted to and it turns on me! Magical backup? Not letting me cast anything! Can you believe it!”

 

Ursula took a step back. “Um, Akko can you please hand me that wand?”

 

Akko groaned and held her wand forward to Ursula. “Take it. Can’t cast _Lux Ire Ultra_ , so how about this wand just _Ire Inferna_!”

 

A sudden violent BANG emitted from the wand, not unlike a firework going off. Unlike a firework that shot up a rocket into the sky, however, an electric green beam shot up pretty far into the atmosphere like a reverse lightning bolt.

 

Everyone’s attention turned towards the beam Akko just emitted with great interest since anything she did remotely resembling a screw up would be at least a day’s worth of adventure.

 

“Hey, you finally got the spell to go through!” encouraged Lotte.

 

“That’s not the spell you’re thinking of dear.” gulped Ursula.

 

“Wh-what did I do?” asked Akko.

 

Before Ursula could answer, the green beam suddenly burst into a similarly colored pulse that shock waved far into the sky. Only after traveling a considerable distance did the wave dissolve.

 

“Thank God there are no air force or signal bases nearby.” croaked Ursula.

 

“Reminds me of an EMP attack from one of Constanze’s games,” noted Amanda, looking at Constanze who was playing said aforementioned game.

 

“Well the power clearly didn’t go out,” added Diana as she stared Constanze’s game too.

 

“It’s a bit worse than that,” muttered Ursula. “Let’s just say anyone using a radio or some sort of GPS is not only going to have their data corrupt, but they’re also gonna start getting some signals from beyond.”

 

“Beyond where?” asked Lotte.

 

As if the universe or some being wanted to answer Lotte’s question directly, a second, but much smaller pulse appeared in the sky and one that instead resembled a green hole in the sky.

 

“I’m guessing beyond means another dimension,” answered Akko.

 

Ursula silently nodded.

 

A moment later, the gigantic green hole began getting brighter and brighter, a crackling noise clearly coming from it and sparks flying around its edges. It was like a computer going haywire or a nuclear reactor on the verge of explosion.

 

And then suddenly, a big flash blinded those who gazed at the green disk, which was obviously everyone on the raised platform. The witches began rubbing their eyes desperate for vision. Some opened them, but could only see blurs.

 

“EVERYONE STAY STILL NOW!” commanded Ursula. “We can not risk any injuries!”

 

The class was groaning and calling out to each other. Akko meanwhile was too lost in thought over what she had done to even raise her voice.

 

“Akko, I swear if you’ve blinded us for life!” hissed Barbara.

 

“You’re gonna pay if I ever lay eyes on you again,” growled Hannah.

 

“Don’t worry, I know exactly what’s happened, so we should be able to see in a few more minutes.” called out Ursula.

 

“I think I’m getting better!” spoke up Amanda.

 

“Yeah, these carrots are helping!” remarked Jasminka, who was now making crunching noises. Everyone was too confused and disoriented to wonder or care where she got those from or how she was eating, but it was clear nothing got between Jasminka and food.

 

Finally, they were all able to retain their vision and shifted their attention to Ursula.

 

“Raise your hands if you can see,” ordered Ursula.

 

The entire class did so.

 

“Good.” nodded Ursula. “Now, I don’t want to alarm you, but there may be a problem, or problems heading our way as we speak.”

 

“What problems?” asked Lotte, tired of Ursula being so cryptic.

 

“And why are they...heading to us?” added Sucy.

 

And that’s when everyone heard that unholy growl. Quite unholy especially as it got louder. And then it was clear it was more than one entity making a growling noise.

 

The students slowly turned their heads up to the sky, where the green disk had been. Now, there was no green abomination in the sky, but it had instead been replaced by multiple red ones. Winged, monstrous, and aggressive looking red abominations.

 

All of them were flying in their direction, not as fast as it could have been, but quite fast. A few minutes and they would touch down and wreak havoc.

 

Akko’s eyes widened. “Are...are..are those what I think they are?”

 

“Unless you somehow thought of something besides demons, then yes,” replied Amanda.

 

“As in the ones straight from hell where all damned souls go to?” checked Akko.

 

“That’s the one!” cheered Jasminka, who was either in deep denial, too trusting of the teachers to handle this, or lost in her carrot snack.

 

“How did this happen?” frowned Akko, too confused to be scared at the moment.

 

Ursula sheepishly chuckled. “Well, coupled with your anger, the fact that you said ‘go to hell’ in latin with a wand that was charging for something powerful thanks to magical backup, it may have been just enough to open a portal to the realm of the damned.”

 

“Oh come on, I didn’t even believe hell was actually a place until 30 seconds ago!” protested Akko.

 

“I’m impressed,” snarked Sucy. “Like actually impressed. You went from trying to write your name in the sky to unleashing the hordes of Inferno.”

 

“Akko, most of our class performs spells at an above average level while you are the only living argument that witches sin against God’s creation.” bluntly remarked Diana.

 

“Shouldn’t we worry about all those demons coming at us?” pointed out Amanda, readying her wand for some action.

 

Ursula gulped. “Listen, while nobody has accidentally summoned demons until this day, there is a way for us to banish them back.”

 

“Some sort of exorcism or banishment spell?” asked Diana.

 

“Oh that’s within the Church’s realm who we should really work on contacting in case plan B doesn’t go well.” quickly replied Ursula.

 

“Plan B?” frowned Akko.

 

“Basically destroy them through brute force which many of you bluntly don’t have the heart or skills for at the moment.” nervously laughed Ursula.

 

A demon roared, the closes one was clearly less than a minute away. It caused quite a few witches to shiver, while Ursula stood firm.

 

At the moment they had all been blinded by the portal, the demons had evidently made a lot of progress on their way down, and were just moments away from landing.

 

“Everyone, form a barrier spell right now!” commanded Ursula.

 

Without hesitation, every witch on the terrace whipped up their wand and formed a transparent shield around them, even combining their barriers when they could. Akko was thankfully able to produce one herself without ill effects.

 

“Don’t worry at all!” assured Ursula. “Our barriers are best at blocking blunt force. The demons will be wasting their time trying to break through. Even if they can break through!”

 

Finally, the first demon landed on the platform and roared loudly. Thankfully no spit got passed any barrier. A good number of them began touching down as well. There wasn’t much room for all of them to stand on the platform, and that wasn’t even counting the fact that the entire structure could collapse with their combined weight, so many of them instead ominously started flying around in a circular pattern. They were like wolves approaching their prey.

 

All that stood between the witches and their demon aggressors was a small space. A small space that was getting further closed by a tailing demon.

 

“Aren’t we going to get help?” asked Amanda.

 

“I think we should hold them off here while we can. We need to stop them from taking the rest of the Academy,” suggested Ursula.

 

“You can call for help, we’ll be fine on our own.” insisted Diana.

 

“Are you crazy!” yelled Akko at the suggestion the students fend for themselves.

 

“I didn’t see a single witch outside today. The rest of the academy might not know that we’re in danger up here,” explained Diana.

 

Ursula paused for a moment to consider it. “Diana are you sure, you can handle this? I can maybe send a student too..”

 

“You said none of us have what it takes to kill one of these, so we have to get someone who can!” replied Amanda.

 

“We really could use an extra teacher around here,” added Sucy.

 

Ursula grunted. “I mean, I myself could probably….”

 

Ursula’s head suddenly rocked down, contemplating what she could do. There really was no reason for her not to use a powerful spell at the moment, but she kept muttering something to herself about how she couldn’t fight alone.

 

“I swear on my admission here that we’ll be fine!” insisted Diana.

 

“I am so fired.” sighed Ursula.

 

Ursula bit her lip and nodded at the plan. “Two minutes! That’s all I ask for. If I don’t come back with help, run back down! The demons won’t fit through the door!”

 

And with that, Ursula hesitated for a good moment to finally drop her barrier and sprint down. Those who saw her leave noted that she was strangely moving fast for someone like her.

 

As for the rest of the witches, the immediate threat was now at hand. They had no adults with them that could properly kill the witches, but their abilities to cast protection barriers were really above what someone their age would normally do.

 

Still, there was immense hesitation as a demon approached them, having sensed the gravity of the situation once their teacher, the most powerful witch among them, left.

 

“I don’t think our barriers can hold all of them,” gulped Lotte.

 

“I really wish witches were Satan’s brides like those lies tell right now.” whimpered Barbara.

 

“You heard the professor, unless you can summon a beefy slayer that can send these demons to their doom, this is our best bet for now,” commanded Diana, standing firm.

 

“Ha! With any luck that savior will just fall out of the sky,” muttered Sucy, trying her hardest to keep the barrier up.

 

_SLAM!_

 

“Ow! What the heck!” exclaimed Akko, whose eyes widened at the sight of what just hit her.

 

“Suitcases?” frowned Lotte, glancing at the bags that were settling on the ground.

 

“And with a cute parachute to guide them down too,” added Jasminka.

 

“No wonder those demons are mad eh?” muttered Amanda. “You spoiled their little hell vacation.”

 

“Oh shut up.” pouted Akko, crossing her arms while contemplating her contribution to the malevolent situation at hand.

 

The large demon proceeded slowly towards the crowd, its mouth barring sharp fangs and flames readying to blast the witches into tiny pieces of charcoal.

 

“Calm down!” yelled Diana. “You heard the professor, keep the shield spell up until they seal those beasts away.”

 

“There’s gotta be something we can do to help and not just sit here.” called out Akko.

 

“Oh please, you’ll just turn our barrier into another portal to hell.” retorted Sucy.

 

The large demon raised an eyebrow as it neared the barrier, displaying an intelligence not seen before. It contemplated the strength of the witches’ magic, and so it decided that the most logical way to take down the barrier was to raise both of its fists and slam it down on the shield.

 

In an instant, the barrier vanished and multiple witches recoiled back from the strike.

 

Diana stood tall however and reactivated her shield, which the demon nonchalantly struck down again. And gain. And gain. It seemed that Ursula had underestimated the strength of either the demons or the witches’ barriers, but Diana looked like she was mildly inconvenienced at best.

 

“Diana you’re awesome but we can’t keep this up all day!” squealed Hannah, who alongside Barbara were clutching Diana for dear life.

 

“Nonsense,” replied Diana, creating barrier after barrier, evidently amused at the insistence of the demon to keep going. “At this rate, I’m confident that…”

 

“I’M GONNA MESS YOU HORNY BASTARDS UP!” yelled a voice that was very masculine and clearly Japanese to Akko, but unknown to most others.

 

As everyone pondered what they just heard, the sound of an explosion rocked the sky. The demon quickly had half of its face blasted off as a flame engulfed it, sending it falling back.

 

The now lifeless body of the demon slammed into the ground and soon dissolved. It had turned into a pile of red ash that vanished into the thin air, presumably to whatever circle of hell it came from where it would rejuvenate by feeding on the souls of the damned.

 

Akko’s eyes widened. She tried to remember all the spells that could have done something like that to a demon, but those spells were not in Japanese, and she was sure those vulgar words didn’t constitute any incantations.

 

And as she glanced up, they appeared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, Ursula darting to get help while her students hold off the demons to be a shield is a major what the hell moment, but bear in mind her rather insistent class can clearly handle itself AND using a spell strong enough to kill a demon would quickly out her secret.


	3. Ordo Malleus: Daemon Hunter Academia

Landing on the platform in the nick of time were three boys in parachutes, their hands clearly glowing with what Akko at first thought was a spell, but then quickly realize were quirks.

And as the blonde boy sent another explosion from his hand that incinerated a demon, it was then that Akko realized exactly who she was looking at. To confirm her suspicions, she looked at the familiar boy with greenish black hair and then at the boy whose hair was split between white and red.

They were Izuku Midoriya, Katsuki Bakugou, and Shoto Todoroki, three relatively well-known heroes in training back in Japan. Their class had been infamous for its run-ins with villains and spectacular participation in the famous U.A high Sports Festival.

"What the heck are they doing here?" whispered Akko to herself. She placed her hands on her mouth as she stared at disbelief at the unlikely coincidence.

Akko was always more interested in Witchcraft than the realm of heroes and quirks that dominated the world, but her home country was so well known for its caliber of heroes that following up with the latest hero news in Japan was unavoidable.

Akko darted her eyes to the other students, who clearly didn't know who these three boys were, further confused as to how they even ended up at Luna Nova at the weirdest moment possible.

What Akko did know, however, was that the hero students, especially Bakugou, were going to have their own 'revisionist' way of dealing with the demon problem compared to what the Professors at Luna Nova had in mind.

"How did these chumps get here?" asked Amanda.

Diana glanced at the parachutes and luggage, which clearly belonged the boys, putting two and two together. "They could have only been skydiving while we were blinded by Akko's spell, and then covered up by the flying demons once we got our eyesight back."

"Hey Akko, do...do you know who they are?" asked Lotte, who caught Akko's expression.

Just before Akko could speak up, Diana walked forward with the most furious expression that Akko had seen on her today.

"Excuse me!" called out Diana. "I don't know who you three are, or how you got here but.."

Diana was cut off by Bakugou unleashing a second explosion that caused her mouth to freeze open, just like that massive hole in the demon's chest. Apparently, Bakugou had vaporized or cauterized the demon's insides because there was no gore to speak of.

And in that instant, even the roaring demons were rendered speechless. The only sound was that of Bakugou's victim crumbling into daemonic dust and vanishing.

"What sorcery is this?" frowned Amanda.

"Nope! That isn't sorcery!" exclaimed Jasminka, happily chewing on a new bag of chips while watching her entertainment, relieved at the backup.

"Gee Akko, how many more things did your spell summon." blurted Sucy, eyes glued at the display.

"ALRIGHT!" yelled Bakugou, still in Japanese. "We're gonna send you unholy shits back to your fiery graves!"

Three demons roared in response and charged at the boys, one to take on each of them.

In return, Deku yelped and leaped forward into the air. With a panicky kick from his charged up legs, the demons were sent flying back, not from a direct kick, but from the sheer shockwave in the air that Akko knew Deku could generate from his quirk.

In response, Todoroki drew out his arm and froze the demons solid, leaving the hellspawn suspended off the ground with horrified expressions in an icy prison. Before gravity could take effect and send the frozen demons crashing down, Bakugou once again attacked with a massive explosion which vaporized the demons from the Earthly realm.

Todoroki looked around and just saw how many demons there were in the air. It was still a total army and their attention was now fixed on the heroes.

"I don't know if we can handle this many." Todoroki muttered.

"Oh please! They wouldn't have called us here if they didn't think we could do it." bragged Bakugou.

Akko frowned at Bakugou's remark. There was no way Luna Nova could have possibly contacted these 3 to get rid of demons of all things unless Ursula had some weird numbers on the line. Since he spoke it in Japanese though, no one called his out comment.

"Kaachan is right!" added Deku, regaining some confidence. "We can't let them waste a perfectly good satanic ritual if we're not gonna fight off these demons."

Akko got offended at that remark. She didn't know how these 3 ended up at Luna Nova, but she knew for sure she didn't summon demons on purpose, especially not for the sake of the hero students.

A demon took a gamble and flew towards Deku while his head was turned to Bakugou, but Deku reacted quickly and slammed his fist into the demon's jaw.

With a big  _CRUNCH_ resonating from the demon, it's supposedly thick skull had clearly been crushed by Deku's fist, and its mouth had been so injured that it couldn't even let out a scream.

Before Bakugou could make a move to finish off the demon however, Todoroki launched a sharp spear of ice right into the Demon's fractured skull, breaking its face entirely. The demon vanished, and so did its blood that had painted the sharp pillar of ice a weird shade of purple.

As Todoroki's victim dissolved, an enraged expression took over Bakugou, who grabbed Todoroki by the shoulders and started growling.

"What the hell! I was going to get killing blow on that one!" raged Bakugou.

"What? You finished off all the other ones. Can't get credit for everything." frowned Todoroki.

Sucy raised an eyebrow as she watched the boys bicker. "I can't tell what they're saying, but are they really having an argument in the middle of life and death?"

As if Sucy's words were an omen, another demon charged the distracted Bakugou who had both of his arms distracted by grabbing Todoroki, only for Bakugou to immediately snap an arm at its direction and blow off the top half the demon.

"I don't think that's gonna be an issue for them," observed Lotte.

Although two minutes hardly passed, Diana had enough of waiting for the adults to come back and stormed towards the boys and yelled at the top of her lungs. "Who are you three! How did you get here!"

Bakugou, Todoroki, and Deku glanced at Diana, with Akko realizing they didn't appear to have given any of the witches much thought amid all this.

Before they could comprehend what was going on however, three demons each swooped towards the boys and grabbed them by the arm with their claws, lifting them off the ground at once.

"Let me go you freak!" demanded Bakugou.

Sucy whispered in Diana's ear. "Nice going, they had it till you jumped in."

The boys tried to struggle free, but the Demons were holding their arms tight, preventing some sort of blast or punch landing right at them. Akko knew it was especially bad now since the demons' one success would be a precedent for them not giving up.

The demons dashed towards the side, away from the castle, where a single wrong move could send the young heroes falling to their deaths.

"Where the hell are the teachers?" frowned Amanda, tired of waiting who thus raised her wand for action.

"I AM HERE! With back up!" yelled Ursula on cue, who slammed the door to the staircase open, flanked by 4 other professors.

The teachers readied their wands to do their part in blasting the demons once and for all, only to suddenly drop them down as well once they saw who had joined the party.

"Who are they, what are they doing here?" asked one professor.

"That's what we're wondering Ms." replied Sucy.

"What are you waiting for? Blast them!" yelled Amanda at the frozen professors.

Amanda was cut off by Ursula. "NO! We can end up hitting those boys or pissing off the demons enough to drop them to their deaths."

"I wouldn't worry about them falling to death." hinted Akko.

Just before anyone could ask what she meant, Todoroki had figured out how to counter the hold of the demon once the initial shock and confusion settled aside.

Todoroki opened his palms and ignited two jet streams of fire from each of them, not hitting the demon directly, but propelling it in the opposite direction like a rocket. The demon holding Todoroki did not expect that and roared as Todoroki began steering it, itself desperately trying to wrestle control.

Bakugou quickly figured out Todoroki's plan and did the same by firing blasts from his own palms, and if the violently jerking movements weren't disorienting the demon enough, Bakugou seemed to put extra effort in making his explosions as loud and damaging to the demon's ears as possible.

Deku meanwhile, decided to use his legs and with a jumping position, was able to create a force underneath him that caught the demon, expecting Deku to use his arms or hands, by surprise.

A few moments passed of the boys and the demons  _they 0_ were now holding hostage flying around in the air like a deflated balloon. Any other demon that tried to aid its comrade was merely hit by a blast from Todoroki and Bakugou or a kick by Deku, much to the evident dismay of the demons that were busy trying to hold the boys in place.

The demons tried to fight fire with fire by pushing the boys to the opposite direction they were blasting at, but the power of their quirks clearly trumped their demonic strength and only resulted in another demon getting frozen, burned or having a hole torn it amid the crossfire.

Amid all the confusion, the demons decided to finally drop the 3 of them to the ground, much to the horror of everyone watching.

"Well, that sucks!" blurted out Sucy, horrified herself at the demons' display.

"Quick!" yelled Ursula. "Get the brooms and.."

_BOOM_

An explosion from below eviscerated the demon that held Bakugou, who himself had just propelled himself in the air with the force of his explosions.

Deku and Todoroki meanwhile were uplifted to the sky by the latter's giant wall of ice. The demons only got angrier at the sheer difficulty it took to kill the heroes.

One demon flew towards Deku at speed unseen before, but it mattered not as Deku quickly responded with a punch that sent the demon flying back. Before its corpse could fully dissolve however, the demon crashed into one of Luna Nova's watchtowers.

Another one attempted to dash towards Todoroki, but he let loose a giant spear of ice that pierced the demon right in its soulless heart. While the demon did vanish upon instant death, Todoroki's icicle kept speeding through the air like a stray bullet and struck one of the castle's terraces. Upon impact, the entire terrace had been frozen solid once the icicle detonated.

As Bakugou, still suspending himself in the air with his explosions, shot down a demon close enough to the tower's wall to scorch its exterior the recklessness of the heroes was becoming apparent.

Ursula quickly used her microphone spell, even forming a giant holographic image of the object to better grab the attention of the heroes.

"WE WOULD APPRECIATE IT IF YOU THREE COULD WATCH WHERE YOU'RE…" Ursula was cut off by a demon corpse narrowly missing her, having been sent flying dead by Deku's kick, which then crashed into the roof of Luna Nova.

The gaping hole in the roof did not suit the look of the academy.

There were still quite a few demons that needed to be taken out, but a new problem had emerged in the young heroes being ruthlessly destructive themselves. Deku's punches didn't instantly kill, so a demon would certainly crash into some part of the building. Meanwhile, Todoroki's and Bakugou's attacks of ice and explosives killed too quickly which sent all sorts of stray blasts flying everywhere.

"We need to evacuate!" commanded Ursula.

Diana's eyes shot open. "But what about those three brutes and…"

"They'll be fine!" insisted Akko, watching the three work their magic, or well, quirks.

"Akko's right!" added Ursula, quickly casting a barrier spell around the students along with the other teachers. "WE are the ones who need to head to safety or before they accidentally blow up this platform."

All of the witches, teacher, and student, quickly began sprinting down the staircase, guarded by the barriers they all made an effort keeping up.

Outside the tower's walls were the sounds of roaring demons meeting their end to the sounds of explosives, scorching flames, chilling winds and Deku's strikes breaking the sound barrier.

Akko herself still didn't know how she was going to explain the situation. The three were essentially the top three young heroes in training back in Japan, mini-celebrities in their own right. What they were doing here or why they thought it was necessary to fight the demons was beyond her other than the latter probably being a gross misunderstanding at their part.

While lost in her thoughts, one of Bakugou's explosions sounded awfully louder than usual. As Akko glanced further up the staircase where thankfully no one was anymore, a blaze shattered the walls of the tower with a charred demon corpse resting on the steps before vanishing.

Akko's mouth dropped at the sheer display of power.

"Stop staring demon spawn!" grunted Sucy, quickly grabbing Akko by the arm and shoving her further down the stairs.

Finally, the witches made it out of the tower, through the main halls of the academy, and were then guided out to the woods and field that surrounded Luna Nova The rest of the school's students and professors had been evacuated out there too.

It seemed to be suicide to stay out in the open like that, but it was clear any of the three heroes' attacks could randomly strike through even the most secluded parts of the building and get someone trapped in the rubble. At least outside the professors could tell where the attacks were coming from and could shield everyone at once.

A plethora of teachers had gotten on their brooms and flew towards the carnage in the sky that was getting increasingly grounded as the boys must've been getting tired of suspending themselves in the air with their quirks.

None of the professors got too close however, since it was evident that the strength of the quirks was powerful enough to kill. Not to mention they had far more of a responsibility to not hit any of the young heroes with their own spells.

One by one, the last of the demons went down. Literally too as the boys finally manage to keep the fight on the surface, no longer having to worry about keeping themselves airborne.

Deku sprinted towards one of the final demons, leaped into the air, and spun around mid-jump as he charged up a powerful kick that practically cracked the demon's skull.

Todoroki meanwhile skillfully ducked before a demon could claw his face off and froze its extended arm before it could make a follow-up attack. Todoroki then proceeded to set the upper half of the demon on fire with his own free arm.

Bakugou hadn't actually managed to take out any of the hellspawn once they had landed on the ground, and was clearly pissed at his classmates taking the final targets out.

Soon enough, all that was left of the demons was a surprisingly larger one, albeit not by much compared to its peers. It appeared to have shirked all of its responsibility in taking out the boys, preferring to instead let its underlings do the heavy lifting throughout the fight.

Now it was all that was left of its group.

The demon roared loudly and out came a beam of fire or some sort of energy that Akko didn't recognize straight at the heroes. It mattered not however as Todoroki unleashed a massive wall of ice that that took the full force of the beam.

The resulting explosion sent ice shards flying everywhere but of course, the professors effortlessly used their own magic barriers to protect everyone. The same couldn't be said of the Academy's entrance that was now pierced with tiny icicles.

Once the flash and smoke from the explosion cleared Deku ran towards the head demon and kicked up into the air with all the force he could muster.

Evident to that demon's relative power over its peers was the fact that it did not instantly die, but that mattered little for what came next.

Before Deku could finish it off, Bakugou, with the most devilish slasher smile he could muster, leaped into the air with his explosions and charged both of his hands for a major attack.

The head demon had been disorientated by Deku's kick, but could still look on in horror as Bakugou blasted it with the largest explosion he had unleashed so far, unsurprisingly disintegrating the demon before its own body naturally crumbled into that daemonic dust.

And of course, that explosion had blown up a significant part of the forest as collateral damage. At least the trees could grow back overnight.

Bakugou landed on the ground, pleased with his own execution of the large demon as if setting things on fire was its own art form.

In the moments that followed, everyone was silent. Even the boys were too busy recovering and trying to comprehend what was going on to comment.

Jasminka however, was still chewing on her snack loudly and happily spoke up. "Well, when it comes to slaying demons. I'd say they're above average."

 


	4. Confrontation

“They actually did it.” said Amanda, arms crossed with an impressed reaction.

“But at what cost.” sighed Diana, noting all the destruction the three had caused.

“Yeah, how the heck are heroes supposed to be the new magic when all they do is destroy?” added Hannah.

“Witches and Wizards would never be so reckless.” agreed Barbara.

“Well, I’m not so certain about that last part.” muttered Diana, glaring at Akko and her friends, but not in a condescending way like her entourage.

With the last of the demons gone back to Inferno, Bakugou, Deku and Todoroki stood in front of the witches, panting and seemingly oblivious to the magical elements around them.

Right when the three thought they were finally safe for having defeated their opponents, they each took a deep breath and finally took a clear look around them. With all the commotion going on around, they had forgotten whose territory they were on.

A couple dozen of witches on their broomsticks or on the ground were pointing their wands at the trio. Those witches were teachers who wouldn’t normally be allowed to hurt a kid, but they had a responsibility to their students first.

The ever stern Professor Finnelan was clearly the leader of the task force as she stood closest to the three young heroes, sneering quite heavily.

“Don’t even think about trying anything funny! You three young men are in more trouble than you can ever imagine.” warned Finnelan.

Deku laughed sheepishly and raised his hands in a surrender pose, realizing that the entire thing was a major misunderstanding of some kind. Drops of sweat immediately began trickling down his forehead and Akko swear she saw some tears forming.

Todoroki did the same, showing a tiny bit of panic instead of his usual stoicism that was displayed on the news or social media.

Bakugou on the other hand merely gritted his teeth and raised his fist, not taking kindly to being asked to surrender.

Deku and Todoroki both dropped their raised hands and quickly pulled back on Bakugou, begging him to stop.

“Kaachan! We can’t fight these people!” pleaded Deku, still in Japanese. He began looking around at the damage the three caused while fighting and realized the full extent of their actions.

“Back off asshole! Like some stupid witches and their sticks scare me!” growled Bakugou.

Akko sighed and was thankful nobody seemed to understand Japanese as that sentence would have immediately gotten those three entrapped by a barrage of spells.

While everyone looked on with amusement or disdain, Lotte innocently frowned at the rather colorful displays of the hero trio.

“Seriously, what’s with these guys? It’s like one of my Japanese animes.” mused Lotte.

Akko was about to comment on her remark when she was interrupted by Bakugou, speaking English for the first time with a rather aggressive and vicious tone.

“And you all look like a bunch of British sitcom rejects!” he yelled, making sure to direct his rage at Lotte. His burst caused Deku to cry out in terror as the witches around them began charging up their spells, but still putting them on hold.

“Oh, so you can understand us.” teased Sucy.

“I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry!!!!” cried Deku in high pitched English, bowing down to the ground rapidly to beg for forgiveness.

Such an anticlimactic action after such massive displays against the demons caused a lot of mouths to drop. Even some of the professors closest to him lowered their wands upon realizing he was harmless in most situations.

“Well, he went from hero to zero quick.” snickered Amanda.

While most of the professors remained in place. Finnelan rolled her eyes and stepped forward with her wand pointing at them, reminded that she was just dealing with misbehaved students all over again.

“YOU THREE! Explain yourselves right now!” demanded Finnelan.

Todoroki walked passed the raging Bakugou and cowering Deku to explain the situation calmly. “There’s been a misunderstanding. The three of us are students from UA High in Japan training to be heroes. We think we may have taken a wrong turn.”

“Some heroes they are.” sneered Diana, as did a few other witches.

Those from established magical families really didn’t like heroes from what Akko knew. Once exclusive and unique magical clans had to deal with the rise of superhero families who began to slowly usurp their place in society. Todoroki’s hero family was perhaps one of the most famous in Japan, and his father was relatively well known around the world too.

“What business do three heroes in training from Japan have to end up in our academy?” inquired Finnelan, who looked like she was moments away from charging up a powerful spell.

  
At this point, Bakugou himself looked like he was just a flick of his arms away from causing a crater, had Deku not seen through him and use his quirk to keep Bakugou restrained.

Deku was too nervous to speak and every extra step of security the professors took just angered Bakugou more and more. This left Todoroki the only one in a position to explain everything, and even he was distracted by Bakugou’s hair-trigger tempered actions.

“Everyone!” cried Ursla. “There is no need for any of this violence to continue.”

Her words rang hollow as even a few students began drawing their wands in retaliation to Bakugou’s anger. After what everyone just saw, no one wanted to take risks getting blasted, frozen, burned or obliterated with a punch.

Todoroki took a deep breath. “Look, my name is Shoto…”

“I know who you are Mr. Todoroki.” called a voice that caused all witches to snap to attention. It was as if all the tension in the area suddenly snapped in two.

Making her way through the crowd was the one who had the best chance of getting everyone to reason. It was none other than Headmistress Mirana Holbrooke, who seemed to be more bemused than angry. Finnelan clenched her teeth, knowing that Holbrooke wasn’t likely to deliver the punishment she wanted.

Holbrooke had appeared out of nowhere, and after her little quip, whispered a few things in Ursula’s ear before she made her way to the three boys.

As Holbrooke walked passed Akko, it was then that the three heroes noticed her for the first time, glancing at her from interest even though one couldn’t really tell from looks alone that someone was Japanese. Before they could dwell on it, their attention turned back to the Headmistress.

Holbrooke glanced at the three boys like she was inspecting a new outfit and nodded her head, much to their, and quite frankly everyone’s, confusion.

“You are Shoto Todoroki, Katsuki Bakugou, and Izuki Midoriya, three star students from Japan’s UA High Hero Course.” said Holbrooke, like she was mildly curious instead of furious.

“Um, yeah.” nodded Deku.

“How the hell do you know who we are?” muttered Bakugou, who seemed too weirded out at the rather sudden display of calmness instead of anger.

“Oh please, I keep up with the Hero World too you know,” laughed Holbrooke. “Especially since some funny people have a funny idea that quirks are going to replace magic forever.”

That statement caused some witches, especially Diana, to pout with annoyance. This sensitive subject was not something one would bring up lightly to wizards or witches concerned about the decline of magic. Even Akko found such a notion distasteful as she longed to show the world the greatness of magic once more.

Bakugou scoffed. “Honestly I’m surprised you’re all...”

“HEY!” Bakugou scowled as Todoroki and Deku elbowed him on his shoulders to get him to shut up, but even a twit knew what Bakugou was going to say.

“Yes, well we witches have been around for a lot longer than you heroes and your quirks have,” grinned Holbrooke. “And we’ll be here for as long as time lasts.”

Deku finally managed to string some words together, still clearly nervous however as he tried to fix his hair. “Um, we’re really sorry about what happened, it’s just that…”

Holbrooke interrupted once more and closed her eyes as she spoke. “Yes yes. You three were supposed to take part in a special activity with the Special Air Service in Hereford base, but you all quite clearly didn’t para-drop like you were supposed to.”

As Holbrooke chuckled, the three heroes and the rest of the witches seemed to have calmed down. Akko was relieved, but even she knew there would be a punishment coming, especially for her given her role in all this.

“It’s amazing,” continued Holbrooke. “Heroes working in the confines of special forces operators? Why that sounds like a great way to combine two disciplines isn’t it? Even us magic users still have ties our elite forces to this day, but other than Professor Nelson serving in the air force with her broom, I can’t say anything more than that. It’s classified you know. I am afraid however, you three won’t be going through with your original plans anymore.”

“We’re not?” frowned Todoroki.

Holbrooke sighed. “Yes, you see three should have realized from the moment you saw us that you had para-dropped to the wrong location after a spell from one of our own disrupted your plane. I mean really, I know our British special forces operators are strange lunatics, but they’re not tiny girls dressing up for Halloween levels of lunatic.”

Deku sheepishly grinned. “I’m sorry, it’s just that we were so focused on the whole flying demons attacking us thing that we didn’t really pay attention to where we were. That and the airline told us we had a test to complete when we landed so..so..”

“You can probably guess why we started attacking those demons,” finished Todoroki. “It honestly seemed like something the SAS would throw at us.”

“That is fair, and the situation was indeed dire, but top students in any setting should be more aware than that. The witches should have been obvious even amid the scary demons.” noted Holbrooke.

“And while measures have to be taken, it won’t be too severe since we do share some of the blame for why you’re all here.” assured Ursula.

“Okay lady, just tell us when you’re sending us back to Japan.” facepalmed Bakugou, wanting to get straight to the point.

“Oh that’s not what’s going to be happening.” smirked Holbrooke.

“It’s not?” cried out everyone at the same time.

Holbrooke paced back and forth with a finger on her lip. “Yes, because you three boys have disrupted magic, you must now aid magic. In order to make up for the damages you caused and ignoring orders to stand down, you three will be spending the time you would have spent with the SAS here at Luna Nova Academy.”

“What!” yelled Diana, Finnelan and the other witches sans Ursula who looked intrigued at the idea.

Deku’s eyes widened. “You mean we’re at THE Luna Nova Academy? That’s the greatest academy for training witches in the whole world. Oh man, if we heroes have UA high, then this place is what every witch wants to go to. Even with the decline of magic you still produce the greatest witches known to the world and the world's most powerful magical artifacts can be traced back here!”

Deku proceeded to go on and on, weirding out everyone sans Holbrooke about the basic, but surprising things he knew. Akko grinned, it seemed Deku, a star young hero, had an interest in magic.

“Yes yes,” shook Holbrooke to cut off the rambling Deku. “And now you can help up un-decline by taking part in the world’s first ever cross hero and magical training session!”

Diana approached Holbrooke. “Madame, with all due respect I highly suggest you reconsider.”

Hannah popped up behind Diana. “Yeah these guys are dangerous freaks!”

Barbara jumped up behind Hannah in turn. “Like hell would they even gonna agree to any of this!”

“I’ll agree with you all on the first and last part.” smirked Bakugou to the trio.

“Well, if it’s a fair punishment,” muttered Todoroki. “I guess we’ll have to go through it.”

“WHAT!” yelled Bakugou, grabbing Todoroki by the shirt.

“C’mon Kaachan this could be really fun.” smiled Deku, ignoring that practically everyone else thought otherwise.

“Indeed, the achievements and discoveries in the world’s first cross magic and hero training sessions will be remarkable,” nodded Holbrooke. “And to think we already broke new records by admitting Akko here as the first witch from a nonmagical background.”

Akko’s eyes widened as Holbrooke pointed towards her. Her name being called out renewed the interest the three heroes had in her, confirming their suspicions of a shared background.

Sucy placed a finger on her chin. “Well, I’ve never tried out heroes for test subjects before.”

Lotte flinched. “I don’t think you’ll wanna get on the blonde one’s bad side.”

Diana sighed in defeat. “I’ll trust your judgment, but you saw those three in battle. Heroes are limited in what they can do but it’s easier for them to use their powers. The strongest quirk always outweighs its magical counterpart and these are especially walking weapons of mass destru….”

Diana noticed the three heroes and Akko frowning at her.

“Please don’t finish that sentence.” requested Todoroki.

“Too far, I’ll admit.” shook Diana, recalling the infamous and sensitive episode in history.

“And if I may,” spoke up Finnelan. “These three each have a quirk which with the slightest intention to kill, can easily do so. They demonstrated that quite clearly with the demons who would normally need a powerful spell to be vanquished or even hurt.”

“That really doesn’t make it better.” whispered Amanda audibly.

“But the fact that they didn’t burn, freeze, punch or blow one of us to smithereens despite the opportunity means we’re more than capable of restraining them with even the slightest outburst.” added Ursula to better assure everyone else.

  
“Hey you got lucky on that part and..” Bakugou was cut off by Todoroki placing his hand on Bakugou’s mouth and gluing it with ice.

“I wouldn’t be sure about that,” teased Ursula. “You might have the power to kill, but I don’t think such young heroes would be capable of taking the life of another human. A robot or demon is a much easier pill to swallow and lose yourself in.”

Bakugou was too busy melting the ice on his face that Todoroki slapped on to respond.

“And don’t worry I’ll make sure that you can keep an eye on them.” smirked Holbrooke, staring specifically at Diana.

“Huh?” frowned Diana in disbelief.

“Well, if you can handle the mischief of some of our students you’ll be able to keep these three delinquents in line.” said Finnelan sternly, finally giving into Holbrooke’s plan.

Finnelan glanced at Akko. “However, we must be reminded that these three boys are not the only ones guilty here.”

Sucy and Lotte lightly stepped away from Akko, for once able to avoid all punishment for wrongdoing that fell squarely on Akko, much to her annoyance.

Finnelan took a deep breath. “Akko, it is ultimately your fault that the tear in reality to Hell appeared and summoned those demons that sent those boys into a panic. You should have IMMEDIATELY handed over your wand to Ursula the moment it was backed up.”

Holbrooke’s smile dropped. “And the reason why I didn’t come in sooner is that their airline contacted me about accidentally dropping three hero students here when the beacon on their plane’s radar got disrupted. Not surprisingly it happened right after the moment Akko would have cast her spell into the air.”

Akko put her hands behind her back and lightly tapped her foot in an attempt to look innocent. Most witches were not surprised by what she had done as she had a knack for trouble, accidental or not.

The three heroes meanwhile had mixed expressions. Bakugou had an ‘I’ll kill you face’ as it burned with rage, Todoroki was biting his lip as he looked lost in thought and Deku had a more empathetic ‘sorry this had to happen’ face.

“Well, I would have had her guide these three anyway, what with her being a Japanese student in Britain too,” shrugged Holbrooke. “Besides, if her actions in that little parade were anything to go by last month, she can redeem herself in an instant.”

“And Amanda!” barked Finnelan.

“What did I do?” pouted Amanda.

“It takes a troublemaker to know a troublemaker so for the sake of having three of our students keeping the three of them in line, you are to aid Akko and Diana in keeping a watch on our new guests.” instructed Finnelan.

“Three for three, I like that” smiled Holbrooke. “And if things run smoothly, you and Diana will get extra credit on any class of your choosing. We are talking big numbers here by the way.”

“Done!” beamed Amanda, easily sold on the idea now.

Akko was grateful that was all she needed to do, even if it technically was going to be a long task. She had an interest in the three young heroes anyway and while she wished they could meet on better terms, this was her chance to get close with them and make amends to the Academy. Again.

Diana meanwhile didn’t care for the extra credit as she was the last person who needed it, but she was clearly contemplating whether or not she could use the opportunity to make a greater statement on the nature of magic to the heroes.

Bakugou gritted his teeth. “If you really think we’re gonna go through all of this..”

“Oh you will!” ginned Holbrooke. “We’ll be informing your SAS contacts and your school about the situation and I’m sure they’ll see it both as a suitable punishment and an exciting opportunity.”

“This is gonna be really cool.” chirped Deku.

“I guess it could be worse.” admitted Todoroki.

“Now, you see the reason why I’m also being so nice to you is that the damage you three caused can easily be fixed or replaced by our magic overnight. The damage is mostly just exterior and decor,” informed Holbrooke. “So your guides shall give you a good tour of the place while we draw up the lesson plans for the next few weeks.”

Ursula waved her wand and levitated the luggage to the feet of the three boys. “You may also want to unpack and settle in the guest room.”

Amanda grunted. “You three are lucky. Since you’re not witches, you get to use all the wifi and tech you want.”

  
Akko glanced over to Constanze who was clearly jealous by the lack of privlege. What that little witch would do for greater tech use in the academy.

“And while we’re together please don’t do anything stupid,” requested Diana. “You heroes are in completely unfamiliar territory here.”

Amanda made her way forward. “Yeah, and I want those extra marks too.”

Akko struggled to put her words together but stood firm. “It was a little weird for me the first day here too, so don’t worry, we’ll see you settled.”

“Good! Dismissed!” announced Holbrooke, who started walking back to the academy as if the previous few minutes didn’t transpire.

Most of the witches remained in place as they watched the three heroes sort out their luggage. Half of them were more intrigued by them than suspicious, while the other half felt the opposite. For the most part, witches and wizards were driven to less and less prominence over time while the age of heroes grew. Once special people now had to deal with most of the planet having some sort of quirk with their own customs and practices, while magical elements were now seen as relics of the past.

Bakugou, Deku and Todoroki represented what was effectively the new status quo. They were the top students in a top high school for heroes in training, and yet they felt so out of place in this academy. What would transpire in the new joint hero and witch training courses would either be a futile or successful attempt at reconciling two eras of superhumans.

The boys got ahold of their bags and silently followed Ursula with Diana, Akko and her friends curiously trailing behind them.

“I know we just fought its legions, but this is gonna be the real Hell.” muttered Bakugou.


	5. Dorm Trip

“He’s doing that shake again.” said Todoroki with a hint of concern, gazing at the excited Deku.

 

Akko appreciated Deku’s enthusiasm for Luna Nova, but was certain that Bakugou was going to ignite the entire academy if he continued for another minute. Deku’s nonstop rambling caused Lotte and Sucy to excuse themselves a quarter of the way through, leaving her, Diana and Amanda the only ones to guide them out of obligation. Ursula herself was accompanying them, but her smile seemed to be wearing thin.

 

Deku would frequently start muttering words in Japanese at the rate he was speaking at, forcing Akko to remind him that he should be speaking English during his stay.

 

“Oh my God is it true that your dungeons are filled with lost treasures and dragons!” squealed Deku, frequently leaping between paintings and displayed artifacts in the hall.

 

“Yep, we even ended up having to fight one!” smiled Akko.

 

“Ohhhh!” gasped Deku, facing Akko for once. “And the Sorcerer's Stone is held on one of the Castle’s Towers?”

 

“Not _the_ Sorcerer's Stone, more like _a_ Sorcerer’s Stone.” winked Amanda, trying her hardest not to laugh at Deku.

 

“You might want to protect that better,” muttered Todoroki. “Leaving it open like that means that the demons could have gotten to it had they spotted it.”

 

“Not if you three got to it first.” whispered Diana, who was promptly ignored.

 

Ursula glanced at Todoroki, smiling but eyes closed. “Don’t worry, that dragon Akko talked about tried to snatch the stone once and got soundly defeated.”

 

“Thanks to Akko no less.” grinned Amanda.

 

Deku gasped even louder, hands on his face. “You fought a dragon! You are so cool!”

 

Akko gave Deku a bright smile, eyes closed at the positive reception she just received. It was one hundred percent perfect to have a star hero in training admire her, for it was a sign that the worlds of magic and quirks could live in harmony rather than suspicion.

 

The moment was ruined however, by Bakugou’s little quip.

 

“So you can do something right.” chuckled Bakugou.

 

Akko gave a pout and was about to make a remark until Todoroki elbowed Bakugou on the shoulder to keep him in line, which Akko figured would be happening a lot on this trip. Even Ursula seemed to tolerate the physical action because words wouldn’t get through the hothead.

 

Diana didn’t raise her voice about the dragon, because the last thing she needed was Bakugou mocking her for accidentally contributing to its rampage.

 

To lighten things up, Deku took a deep breath and asked his next question. “So, like, we were skydiving and all that and saw a town nearby. Are they all wizards and witches too?”

 

Akko chuckled. “Nah, but they’re more involved in magic than the average town. Most of the girls our age just go to a nearby co ed school next town over and..”

 

Amanda cut off Akko. “While all the guys go to St. Andrews which is right next door in case you three get tired of all the girly stuff like I do.”

 

Bakugou grunted. “All girl and all boy schools? Gee we really did go back in time.”

 

Diana winced. “I’ll have you know that both academies are going to desegregate by the end of the decade AND have produced research that is always held in high esteem.”

 

“Yeah I’m sure our world notices too.” grinned Bakugou.

 

Akko and Deku glanced at each other and gulped, trying to both find a way to diffuse the situation. The two were really excited by this opportunity, while the rest were either ambivalent or were totally against it.

 

“Bakugou!” called out Ursula. “I know words won’t get to you and you’re understandably mad, but be on your best behavior before the Academy rethinks its punishment to mean expulsion from UA.”

 

“You mustn’t submit yourself to this Professor,” assured Diana. “We can take these three to their dorms just fine on our own.”

 

“True, but it’s clear that our attitudes are not in the right place yet.” noted Ursula, looking straight at Bakugou who turned around faced the teacher, not even flinching.

 

“Like you said, they’re a little shell shocked. We got this!” defended Amanda.

 

“Nah,” shrugged Todoroki. “But your friends won’t stop staring at us.”

 

Akko, Deku and their friends looked around the halls and saw the student witches, either out in the open or hiding behind their dorms, staring at them with curious intent. Heck, even a teacher seemed to be spying on the group.

 

Ursula bit her lip. “Well, if they know I’m watching I’m sure they’ll calm down.”

 

And with that the group continued to the guest dorms.

 

“So, everyone is okay right?” asked Deku to Ursula. “We’re still really sorry about what happened.”

 

“Just like the headmistress said, no one got hurt, relax my dear.” smiled Ursula.

 

“But it will take a more than a moment to forgive.” noted Diana.

 

Akko glanced down a bit in shame for her role amid all this. “I really hope Lotte and Sucy aren’t too mad.”

 

“I overheard them when they walked ahead, and you were distracted by Izuku. They think our little heroes are kind of funny.” explained Ursula.

 

“Not at them!” exclaimed Akko, waving her hands wildly. “AT ME! I’m the one who tore open a portal to hell and summoned satan spawn! I’m the one who freaked messed up the airplane’s radar, I’m the one who scared the heroes and got our academy’s beautiful facade all screwy.”

 

“Not to mention the theological crisis you probably just spawned considering there are a few churches and a synagogue nearby.” teased Amanda.

 

“I’m sure the demons were scared of us.” responded Bakugou to Akko’s rant.

 

“Well, this isn’t the first time you’ve recovered from something dreadful.” smirked Ursula.

 

“And we’ve been in our share of bad situations too,” assured Deku. “Plus, it doesn’t make a difference to me if we’re not training with special forces anymore, we’re gonna be part of the first cross hero-magic training course!”

 

“Yay!” cheered Akko, spirits lifted.

 

“We might as well make history while we’re here.” noted Todoroki, glancing at some rather historical artifacts himself as he spoke.

 

“I agree,” muttered Diana. “I guess it’s Luna Nova’s honor to be the first school for witches or wizards to host heroes in training.”

 

Ursula clapped her hands in approval. “See! Now that’s the spirit I want.”

 

Akko was happy that Diana gave into the situation, but noted that the latter’s expression was still stern, as if she was merely trying to avoid getting into trouble for her attitude like Bakugou was bound to be.

 

The mention of first heroes also caused Deku to remember something he had been meaning to ask Akko before he got distracted, especially given how relatable it was to him.

 

“So you’re the first student at Luna Nova that doesn’t come from a registered magical family right?” checked Deku.

 

“Yep, first in my family to practice magic!” confirmed Akko.

 

“How does that exactly work?” pondered Todoroki.

 

Todoroki himself was clearly interested in the subject given that his family’s prestige in the hero realm matched the prestige once held by magical families centuries ago. Diana, who came from such a magical aristocratic family, had also put her focus on Todoroki as if he was a sort of rival which was fitting considering that Todoroki’s clan contained the literal number one hero.

 

The difference was that Todoroki was less of a fan for such dynastic concepts.

 

“What do you mean by that Todoroki?” asked Akko.

 

 “I thought that if you had a quirk, you could never practice magic.” clarified Todoroki.

 

“Oh yeah, I’m quirkless!” answered Akko.

 

Deku’s eyes shot open as he gazed at Akko.

 

There she was, a girl who had no quirk in a society full of them, the country she grew up in especially notable for the heroes it produced to further insult any quirkless Japanese person. Deku himself had been such an outcast until a fateful encounter with All Might, who himself was born quirkless, allowed him to inherit one for all.

 

The more Deku thought about it, especially when he considered his meeting with the young and quirkless genius Melissa Shield, the more he realized that people were bending the rules to a world where success was mostly guaranteed by a good quirk.

 

Todoroki all the while nodded at the response and asked a follow up to the witches in general.

 

“Magical ability doesn’t have to be inherited?” he continued.

 

“Akko proved that any quirkless individual can learn it.” answered Ursula.

 

“For better or worse.” muttered Diana.

 

Deku’s mouth dropped. “That’s amazing! Akko, you’re the future! No longer will quirkless kids grow up thinking they’re doomed to mediocrity.”

 

Akko’s eyes sparkled, she had thought about it before, but hearing it was always nice.

 

“YAY! You’re so sweet Deku.” chirped Akko, placing a hand on Deku’s shoulder which caused his face to turn red.

 

“You know, we thought Deku was quirkless too.” brought up Bakugou, in his accusatory tone that he’d always use when discussing the touchy subject. He was perhaps the only person who knew the truth about Deku’s quirk but refused to make it explicit just yet.

 

Deku yelped, but Akko remained oblivious, looking at him with awe.

 

“You were considered quirkless once?” gasped Akko.

 

Bakugou explained, unfortunately for Deku. “Yeah, he was just some runt who thought he could get into the hero course at UA without a quirk. Then all of a sudden he shows up to the exams with a quirk that lets him charge up parts of his body to deliver powerful hits, but it’s like he had no control over his quirk in the first place since he kept getting himself hurt.”

 

Amanda put a hand on her lip as she glanced at the nervous Deku. “That could explain your uh, breakdown-y face you have a lot.”

 

Deku didn’t say anything, but then Akko brought up the point he really wish she didn’t.

 

“You know your quirk is a lot like All Might’s.” noted Akko.

 

Deku bit his lip and tried to catch his breath, not realizing his nervous look was only making things worse.

 

Todoroki then had to speak up about his own theory. “Still not unconvinced you’re not All Might’s secret love child.”

 

“Hey, that’s actually a good one Icy Hot.” admitted Bakugou with a sharp grin.

 

Deku realized now was his chance to defend himself. “I mean, my quirk does have a similar premise to All Might’s, which is why he’s a little interested in me you know.”

 

“I would say it’s more like the exact same.” accused Bakugou.

 

“You know it’s not unreasonable for two people to have the same quirk,” pointed Diana. “I mean the odds of you and Todoroki being able to set things on fire and be at the same class should be small but here you two are.”

 

“Hey!” growled Bakugou. “My explosion quirk is nothing like his!”

 

“Yeah, my fire is a lot more versatile.” chided Todoroki, annoyed at Bakugou.

 

“Well, my explosions can do a whole lot more than burn.” hissed Bakugou.

 

Akko decided to give Bakugou a little tease. “You know, I watched you two fight at the UA Sport’s Festival on the internet...”

 

“You actually watched that? Thought you were all magic.” frowned Amanda.

 

“It’s a lot of fun! And it’s super popular where I’m from!” defended Akko, “Anyway, you were yelling about using his fire against you to make it more of a hard fight, but I was way more entertained by the ice vs explosion match. Burning vs. Burning is boring.”

 

Bakugou growled, Todoroki smirked for once.

 

Akko continued on. “It would be like that fight between...what are their names….oh yeah Kirishima and Tetsu something right?”

 

“Correct.” nodded Todoroki.

 

“Or a fight between Deku and All Might.” teased Bakugou.

 

Deku strung his words together. “No! There are differences, of course. I…mean..well, I don’t turn into a giant slab of muscle like he does.”

 

Ursula then threw her own quip into the conversation. “Don’t worry Deku. It’s your quirk no matter how similar it is. Don’t get all those people comparing you to All Might constantly get you down.”

 

Deku smiled sheepishly and tousled his hair, happy that he found a way out of the accusation. “Yeah, I’m getting used to it. In fact, one of the reasons I thought I was quirkless was because I never considered that my quirk could have been just like my idol’s.”

 

Bakugou’s grunt indicated that he didn’t buy Deku’s lie however, much to the latter’s worry.

 

Akko continued on with a subject that was touchy for all three of the heroes in turn. “I do really feel sorry for what happened to All Might though. After that fight with that All For One guy, he got really messed up.”

 

“Oh yes, I saw his picture on the internet to,” noted Diana. “He looked absolutely dreadful.”

 

“Total skeleton,” added Amanda. “Shame because I like my boys all beefy.”

 

“So did I until I settled for the more Princely look.” laughed Akko.

 

“Woman of culture as well I see.” giggled Diana, much to Akko’s surprise.

 

All the while, Bakugou, Todoroki and Deku didn’t know what to say at that exact moment. They had not only witnessed the fight between All Might and All for One, but were effectively a reason why the fight had to happen. All of it had to be done to rescue Bakugou from the clutches of villains, and he hadn’t exactly stopped blaming himself for the incident. Deku did hold the view however that All Might’s deterioration had to happen anyway.

 

Still, given that it was all just a short while ago wasn’t doing the three any favors.

 

Ursula decided to lighten up the mood regarding All Might. “Still, he was a great symbol of peace. You heroes were really lucky to have him.”

 

Deku chuckled. “Well, he’s still around at UA and can bulk up for like a second or two. But yeah! He’s who we all wanna be. Every hero looks up to him.”

 

Akko made a happy noise as this was the perfect time for her to talk about her own All Might.

 

“I know just how you feel Deku!” cheered Akko.

 

“Oh boy.” sighed Amanda.

 

“Here we go again.” whispered Diana.

 

The boys noticed Ursula visibly twitch for some reason, but Akko went on.

 

“See, I always loved magic a whole lot more than the world heroes and quirks,” told Akko. “It all started when I was a little girl and saw Shiny Chariot perform live in Japan!”

 

Much to Akko’s surprise, the boys actually knew what she was talking about.

 

Deku’s eyes were practically glowing. “You saw Shiny Chariot live! I only saw it on tv and I’m still blown away by the recording.”

 

“I actually saw it live myself,” brought up Todoroki. “My dad didn’t want to be there, so my mom had to sneak me out, but she insisted on mostly recording my reactions than Chariot herself.”

 

“That’s pretty funny Todoroki.” chuckled Deku.

 

“No, it’s not, my dad got really angry and my mom didn’t record any of the good stuff.” said Todoroki, which nearly killed the mood.

 

“Well, I still have my signed shirt.” bragged Bakugou, whose haughty expression was cut off when he heard Ursula welp.

 

His statement was a major surprise. Bakugou of all people bragging that he had an item from a witch when he had just been trashing the magical academy the whole time.

 

Akko was extremely happy, however. “Oh my gosh, you all three are Shiny Chariot fans!”

 

“Eh, more like she was just really popular when we were kids.” noted Todoroki.

 

“Yeah, she kinda dropped off everyone’s radar, which is a shame because it was a great show.” noted Deku, looking a little solemn at the fact.

 

“It _was_ a great show.” muttered Ursula.

 

“Huh?” collectively went the students.

 

Ursula faced the students with a sheepish smile. “Come on, she was popular amongst people my age too you know.”

 

“Well maybe amongst the non-magic folk.” replied Diana.

 

“What do you mean non-magic folk?” frowned Deku.

 

“She never really took off amongst the magical realm.” explained Amanda.

 

Diana’s face went into rant mode. “And for good reason! She was sending the wrong idea about witches and wizards to the public. Ideas that we’re nothing but entertainers and that magic isn’t a powerful or even dangerous force if not understood correctly.”

 

Akko glared at Diana, while the boys noticed Ursula’s hand forming a fist.

 

“Oh, lighten up.” said Bakugou.

 

“Excuse me?” scoffed Bakugou.

 

“Face it sugar,” laughed Bakugou. “Shiny Chariot was the only witch people gave a damn about in the last one hundred years. You wanna know why? Because she didn’t restrict herself to stupid traditions and codes so that she could be known! She had style! She was awesome! If she didn't disappear off the face of the map, other witches and wizards would’ve gotten off their ass and proved to the world you all have something to offer, but even that’s no excuse to be a lazy punk.”

 

“Yeah, the world would be different if she was still around.” agreed Todoroki, raising an eyebrow at the fist of Ursula that was now shaking rapidly.

 

Akko pouted. “Well, that’s the world I wanna live in and create.”

 

“And I wanna see it happen too!” cheered Deku.

 

“Yay!” smirked Akko, getting to close to Deku once more.

 

“Heh heh,” gulped Deku. “You know, it’s a shame about Chariot though because she was my first crush as a kid.”

 

“Same actually.” admitted Todoroki.

 

“She was hot.” nodded Bakugou.

 

Ursula blushed, but kept her face hidden. “Really?”

 

The students frowned at her once more.

 

Ursula adjusted her glasses. “I mean, the first crush of three young heroes in training was a witch? That’s so cute! I know a lot of guys my age and even a few girls who tried to ask her out.”

 

“Yeah, but she probably got old and had her kids anyway.” laughed Bakugou.

 

“Old?!” blurted Ursula.

 

Bakugou formed a smirk after a moment of hesitation. “Oh, I get it.”

 

“You...you do?” gulped Ursula.

 

“Yeah, you’re her age so if she’s old, then you’re old.” Said Bakugou, which made Ursula calm down for some reason the students didn’t get.

 

“Does he talk to his teachers in UA this way?” asked Akko.

 

“Sometimes.” whispered Deku. It was more like a lot.

 

“He’s going to be a total pain isn’t he?” sighed Diana.

 

Bakugou was elbowed by Todoroki for his remark, but he ignored it and finished up with his joke. “But hey miss, looking at you I take it all back.”

 

Now it was Ursula’s time to joke around. “Well thank you Bakugou, but I would suggest refraining from making such remarks to women like that if you’re going to find a flame here.”

 

Bakugou’s eyes widened. “WHAT?”

 

Ursula winked. “Yeah, I bet some young witches here are just fascinated by the hero realm if you know what I mean.”

 

Bakugou was too shocked to respond, while Akko, Amanda and Diana were totally red faced.

 

Before Ursula could continue, another professor approached her and tapped her on the shoulder.

 

“What is it?” asked Ursula.

 

“We need you to draft your first lesson plans for our joint class with our guests by tonight.” explained the other professor.

 

Ursula took a deep breath. “Of course. I trust the guides of these heroes can escort them to their guest dorm without much hassle or destruction.”

 

Diana glanced at the bubbly Akko, smug Amanda, brooding Todoroki, angry Bakugou and chirpy Deku while she thought about the infinite bad scenarios that could arise.

 

Still, Diana forced a smile and nodded. “We’ll be okay.”

 

“Great! See you all very soon.” beamed Ursula, finally taking off in another direction.

 

For the rest of the walk the group remained silent sans Deku’s continued ramblings and Akko or sometimes Diana answering his questions.

 

In order to stop the young Midoriya from going on for another hour, Diana made sure to remind them all of something crucial.

 

“Listen, you all are representing the realm of heroes to witches that most likely lived in their secluded communities for most of their life.” explained Diana.

 

“Not my fault y’all couldn’t get out there.” retorted Bakugou, who once again was met by a smack from Todoroki.

 

“See!” yelled Diana. “You all need to behave unless you want a major PR disaster.”

 

“Chill Diana,” groaned Akko, rolling her eyes. “We gotta be careful to.”

 

“Exactly!” agreed Diana. “So unless you want to prove that our worlds are incompatible, don’t mess anything up!”

 

Diana faced Todoroki and Amanda. “And can you two please at least pretend to care.”

 

“Of course I care. I get extra credit from all this.” defended Amanda.

 

“I mean it’s an interesting experiment.” admitted Todoroki.

 

Diana looked at Deku, but really couldn’t reprimand him for anything that she hadn’t said. He could stop ranting on and on, but she figured that was a general personality quirk of his like it was to punch things with his physical quirk.

 

“And Diana!” called out Akko. “Could you at least not be a total snob for the next month!”

 

Diana gasped and was about to make a response, only for Amanda to cut her off with a sudden pointing of her hand.

 

“Oh look, here we are!” called out Amanda, facing the door of the guest room.

 

“We are!” cheered Deku, opening the door in an instant and looking inside.

 

The dorm was surprisingly modern, and besides magical accessories and books scattered here and there, resembled a modern hotel room than the more ‘witchy dormy’ look Akko was accustomed to at Luna Nova.

 

Deku wasted no time looking at every little trinket in the room, which was to say a few of them and certainly decor given that the room was meant for guests.

 

“Nice place you got there.” approved Amanda, noting how the room was slightly more spacious than a typical student dorm.

 

Diana raised her voice once more. “Just remember, you three are extremely lucky to be here and not deported, so at least keep things orderly in your room.”

 

Bakugou blew her off and headed in the room. “Yeah, so lucky to be in an academy with a bunch of beady little eye anglo witches and their burning hatred for modern civilization.”

 

“I am like the only anglo student in my grade!” countered Diana, missing the point on purpose.

 

“Keep this up Bakugou and no one’s gonna take you as top hero seriously.” warned Todoroki.

 

Bakugou ignored him and started to unpack. Deku on the other hand headed back to the doorway to say his good bye.

 

Deku gulped and tried to string his words. “Listen, I know we got off on a rough start and all..”

 

“I’m sorry too.” interrupted Akko, regarding her own mess up.

 

Deku formed a sheepish smile. “I just wanted to say that this is really huge right? No one has done this before and I wanna say that it’s an honor that you’re giving us this chance.”

 

Even Diana grinned at his cute display and Amanda tried hard not to give a girly giggle.

 

“Don’t worry, I’m gonna use the next month to prove magic can still exist in our world of heroes.” smirked Akko.

 

“And so will I!” said Deku with more confidence.

 

“Yay!” Akko beamed her smile and waved the boys goodnight, while Amanda gave a smirk and Diana tried her best to keep her half smile.

 

Deku returned the favor with his own adorable expression, before Bakugou slammed the door shut.

 

Akko’s eyes widened at the sudden jerk of the door, but decided not to let him get to her. Still, he would be the toughest nut to crack on the side of the heroes if Akko wanted to prove her ideals to the quirk run society. The same could be said for Diana as Akko glanced her furious demeanor, not used to someone being so flippant to her.

 

The young witches gave their own sighs and made a break for the main dorms. Now that it was late in the afternoon, the witches would have had their time off anyway. The professors meanwhile were surely working on contacting UA High and the SAS to inform them of the sudden change in plans, as well as drafting new study lessons to account for the presence of the three heroes.

 

There was one thing that was plaguing Akko’s mind, something about Deku that seemed off while they were talking about his quirk.

 

As if Diana could read Akko’s mind, she spoke up with the same thoughts Akko had.

 

“Just to be clear, all three of us are on the same page that Deku has All Might’s quirk, but he can't tell us for reasons that are none of our business, right?” checked Diana.

 

“Oh yeah.” nodded Amanda.

 

“Totally.” added Akko.

 

Meanwhile in the dorms, Bakugou slumped on his bed, the single mattress bed specifically so he wouldn’t have to share a bunk with Todoroki and Deku.

 

To perfectly illustrate how they felt about the situation, Deku was speed reading a book on magic that had been left on the shelves, while Todoroki was just browsing social media on his phone, probably updating his the class on his situation.

 

Bakugou all the while had been pondering something about professor Ursula and raised his concern to his so-called friends.

 

“Just to be clear, you two idiots know that Ursula is really Shiny Chariot, but can’t tell us for some reason that isn’t our business, right?” checked Bakugou.

 

“Oh yeah.” nodded Todoroki.

 

“Totally.” added Deku.

 


	6. Potions Class

 

Akko was banging furiously on the bathroom’s door.

 

“Come on! Don’t tell me you guys are still changing!” called out Akko.

 

“You know it’s not impressive to be late to your first class!” reminded Diana.

 

“And I’ll be docked for it too you know!” chided Amanda.

 

“No way we’re coming out!” yelled Bakugou from inside the bathroom.

 

“I want to go, but Kaachan won’t let me!” cried Deku.

 

“And sadly, he’s physically stronger than both of us.” added Todoroki.

 

Akko groaned. “Can’t you just blast your way out?”

 

The sound of Deku falling on the floor, obviously from Bakugou’s doing, preceded his statement. “We’d try to, but we can’t get in more trouble.”

 

“At least they’re playing that part smart.” shrugged Amanda.

 

Diana rolled her eyes. “You read the dossier, you have to be wearing those uniforms while you spend time here in Luna Nova.”

 

“No way is anyone else seeing me like this!” roared Bakugou.

 

Akko’s eyes almost teared with anxiety. “Come on, I got up early to pick them myself!”

 

“That explains it.” hissed Bakugou.

 

“And it’s not like she made you wear a dress. Come on!” complained Amanda.

 

“You know we can barge right in and see you anyway.” pointed out Diana.

 

“You’re not gonna get passed his strength.” grunted Todoroki, who seemed to be struggling against Bakugou physically now.

 

“And like hell would you dare!” warned Bakugou.

 

Diana smirked. “Why not? It’s a unisex bathroom! Our school has practically only hosted women and we’re desegregating by the end of the decade, so we never bothered to put up a boys only sign.”

 

“Anything goes!” gloated Amanada.

 

Deku yelped. “Still not gonna change the fact you won’t get passed him.”

 

“The teachers might.” teased Akko.

 

And with that, Bakugou groaned and opened the door, revealing the three heroes and their new uniforms for Luna Nova. Well, uniform wasn’t the right word since they all had slightly different colors and didn’t have any school logos, but it did fit the dress code for males that visited for certain events.

 

All three of them were wearing a pretty formal outfit, consisting of a shirt, a tie, a sleeveless sweater vest and suit pants. All that was missing was a suit jacket to make it look like they were attending an office meeting. The colors of their outfits varied, with Deku’s being a mixture of black and green, Todoroki having red and blue while Bakugou’s was black and red.

 

“I swear this is the same outfit Kirishima forced me to wear on that island.” said Bakugou, eyes twitching and hastily recalling the events involving the Shields and Wolfram on I-Island.

 

“I think we look like villains, but this will do.” sighed Todorki.

 

“Well, I think it’s great Akko!” cheered Deku.

 

Akko’s eyes sparkled upon seeing the boys in their outfits. “YAY! You three look sooo cute!”

 

Akko made her way to Deku and began pinching his cheeks. “You’re adorable in that outfit! Yes you are!”

 

“Knock it off, you three are barely a year older than us.” reminded Bakugou.

 

Deku’s face all the while was burning red. He’d probably die from embarrassment before the weekend.

 

Diana had a faint grin, but she seemed more amused by the reaction of the heroes than the outfits themselves. Amanda on the other hand was laughing like crazy the moment she saw the three heroes step out of the bathroom.

 

“Would you cut it out!” yelled Bakugou to Amanda. “You all look stupid in your outfits too!”

 

“Yeah!” agreed Amanda. “But we don’t look like supervillain henchmen.”

 

Diana got everyone back on track. “Uniforms aside, we cannot be late! Let’s make a move now!”

 

“Oh chill, we have some time.” replied Akko.

 

Deku thought he was in the clear before Akko burried her face in his again. “Can I escort the cute little gentleman to magical pharmaceutical class?”

 

“Um, okay.” whelped Deku, who could hardly breathe as Akko’s presence and cuteness was too much for him to handle. It was also now daunting on him that he was roughly the same height as Akko, who herself was the shortest of the three girls escorting his group, which meant that events like the following were bound to happen again.

 

Once Akko cheered “Yay!” at Deku’s remark, she grabbed his hand and began dragging him to pharmaceutical class, skipping happily while Deku slid on the floor.

 

Todoroki almost grunned. “I hope you know how to clean suits with magic because he’s going to get a little dirty.”

 

“Eh, it’ll be fine,” shrugged Amanda. “This ain’t the first time someone showed up to class all rugged or by being dragged.”

 

“Kinda feels like UA already.” noted Todoroki.

 

Bakugou, hands in pockets raised his voice regarding his confusion. “So why are we doing God damn potions class with you all? That doesn’t sound like it’s relevant to heroes at all.”

 

“That’s the point Bakugou,” chided Diana. “Our job here is to make it relevant.”

 

Bakugou stared aimlessly down as he walked, noting how the professors repaired the exterior damage to the school overnight. “I really didn’t see myself doing this for a month when I decided to go to Britain you know.”

 

Diana shrugged. “Well, neither did I, but I say you and your friends have the chance to do some pretty revolutionary things here.”

 

Bakugou raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

 

“You’re one of the top heroes in training at UA, maybe all of Japan or even the world,” admitted Diana. “Surely you yourself know the kind of potential you have for amazing feats, which given your history has been the case in multiple incidents. I know myself what that feels like thanks to people like Akko. Believe me.”

 

“So…?” inquired Bakugou.

 

“So I really hope you don’t screw this up, because whether I like it or not, you’re the future and have the ability to change the way we perceive and understand things.” said Diana.

 

Bakugou chuckled at the supposed flattery. “Come on, don’t sell yourself short. I hate it when people do that unless they’re total runts that know their place.”

 

Diana rolled her eyes. “Oh I don’t, but your society of quirks and heroes do. I can’t believe that it stands where magic once stood, nor do I think it should.”

 

Bakugou smirked. “Well, if you don’t use this opportunity to smack me and any other sane person in the face dead wrong, I’ll be disappointed.”

 

“Oh, you won’t.” bragged Diana.

 

Todoroki couldn’t help but half grin. The conversation between Bakugou and Diana was not completely hostile, even though it was clear the two still saw each other’s worlds at odds with one another. He didn’t really have much of a stake in this clash of worlds himself. He was ambivalent. Still, it wouldn’t hurt to help a more forgotten part of the world now would it?

 

“And we’re here!” called out Amanda.

 

“Yay! First class boys!” Akko let go of Deku’s hand causing it to slump to the ground alongside the rest of his dragged body. Right in front of them all was the entrance to the Magic of Pharmaceutics class, also known as Potions class.

 

Deku stood and dusted himself off, a toothy smile on his face. “Oh my God oh my God oh my GOD this is going to be amazing. We’re going to be the first heroes in a class meant for wizards and witches guys! Isn’t this awesome?”

 

“Yeah.” shrugged Todoroki.

 

“Could be worse.” admitted Bakugou.

 

“Your first impressions were destroyed, but seconds could do you justice since we admirably screwed up our first impressions too, right Akko?” stated Diana.

 

“RiGhT AKkO?” repeated Akko with a mock accent.

 

Deku took a deep breath. “Okay guys, we’re going to make history right now, so we need a really really really good impression. Oh man, what are we going to do? What are we going to say? Think? Feel? I CAN’T TAKE THE PRESSURE!”

 

Deku’s breaths got faster and faster as Amanda face palmed.

 

Akko got close to Deku again. “Aw calm down, just show them your cute little face and all will start anew!”

 

“What if they don’t find me cute?” blurted Deku.

 

“That’s scientifically impossible given that Class 1A voted you as the cutest,” remarked Todoroki. “But the witches could still hate your guts regardless.”

 

“Voted me what!?” cried Deku. How come he never heard of this?

 

“Oh quit being a wuss.” groaned Bakugou as he made his way to the door.

 

“Wait no!” blurted Amanda, immediately stepping in front of Bakugou.

 

“Excuse me?” said Bakugou in a way that was clear he took the gesture as a threat.

 

“Look Mr. I hate and want to blow up everything,” began Amanda. “You’re probably the hero the other witches are going to want to see the least first, so maybe we should start with Deku first. I mean, he’ll at least send the message that you’re harmless.”

 

Bakugou glanced at the still rambling Deku and back at Amanda. “I agree on that last part, but move out of my way.”

 

Diana scoffed. “Oh no, you don’t!”

 

Akko clenched her fists. “You’re not cute enough to be first!”

 

Bakugou continued forward, Amanda trying to physically stop him to no avail. It ended with all three of the witches trying to restrain Bakugou by latching onto him, with Akko herself having her turn being dragged on the floor as she clutched Bakugou’s leg.

 

Of course, if two heroes in peak physical condition couldn’t stop Bakugou, there was no hope for Amanda, Akko, and Diana. Bakugou merely walked on as if nothing was holding him back and entered the classroom.

 

Inside the class, the student witches watched with confusion at the sight of Bakugou coming in with his three guides unsuccessfully attempting to restrain him.

 

Professor Lukic who instructed the class, greeted Bakugou as if nothing was latched onto him. “I see you’ve made it.”

 

“Sadly.” replied Bakugou, who by a sheer extension of his arms and leg forward knocked off Amanda, Diana and Akko who all got up and dusted themselves off like Deku did.

 

Sucy, raised an eyebrow. “He’s feisty as usual.”

 

Just then Todoroki entered the classroom in a relatively normal fashion and presented himself to the class. “Shoto Todoroki. Pleased to be here.”

 

“Likewise.” nodded Lukic.

 

For a moment nothing happened. The two heroes and their three guides were just awkwardly standing in front of the class. The witch students were wondering if this was some sort of trick or display they weren’t prepared for, so some tried to hide behind their desks.

 

The silence was then broken by Lukic. “Weren’t there 3 of you heroes?”

 

As if on cue, Deku slammed the door open. “I AM HERE!”

 

And then Deku’s pupils shrunk as he realized that he had been so lost in his thoughts that he failed to notice Todoroki and Bakugou having already entered the classroom. The nature of his awkward display was also apparent.

 

Deku awkwardly laughed. “Heh. Heh. It’s nice to meet….you?”

 

None of the witch students did anything but stare. Well, except Akko of course who had her hands clasped together as she admired Deku’s cute display like he was a little kitten.

 

Lukic faced the rest of her class. “Now then. I am happy to announce that the first course of the cross hero and witch training program in the world is going to be held in my potions and pharmaceutical class here. I wonder what sort of macabre or mystifying things we are going to discover.”

 

The macabre part didn’t really sit well with anyone except maybe Deku and Akko.

 

Lukic glanced at the three heroes. “I hope you three enjoyed your extra hours of sleep. The professors had to get up early to help finish repairs while the students had to practice barrier magic in case something went wrong.”

 

The boys knew what she meant on that last part.

 

Bakugou glanced at the rows of students behind their potions equipment, noting all the cups of coffee that fitted both their tired and cautious expressions.

 

“Can’t blame ya prof.” muttered Bakugou, who thankfully didnt give a slasher smile that would have escalated the tension.

 

“You all can sit now. You boys have the special desk right in front of mine.” instructed Lukic.

 

It was obvious that the desk with no alchemical or magical equipment was the one meant for Todoroki, Bakugou and Deku. All that was on it was some sheets, paper and a textbook for note taking.

 

Akko, Amanda and Diana tried to head to the back of the room, only to be called out by Lukic.

 

“Oh oh oh wait!” exclaimed Lukic. “You three are going to be partners for the rest of the month and sit next to our guests.”

 

Next to the relatively empty table meant for the heroes was an unoccupied, but properly equipped one where Akko, Amanda and Diana would have to do their work.

 

The three young witches however were slightly hesitant, not because they were slightly averse to working with each other already due to some incidents, but because this meant they couldn’t work together with their usual friends. Sure enough the people they had normally hung out with were mixed into their own groups of three. Lotte would be doing just fine with Jasminka and Constanze, while Sucy was paired up with a frightened Hannah and Barbara, who for once weren’t entirely cowering because of the heroes.

 

The only consolation for them was the humor in seeing Bakugou utterly pissed that the chirpy Deku and brooding Todoroki were going to have to be his partners for a month.

 

Diana sighed and complied with the instruction. “Understood Ma’am”.

 

She glanced at Akko and Amanda with a ‘don’t screw this up’ face and the three readied themselves for the class which Lukic finally began.

 

“Alright everyone,” announced Lukic. “Today we are going to be doing things a little differently than usual, so are there any questions before I proceed?”

 

“OH OH OH!” yelled Deku, raising his hand high into the sky, almost flicking Todoroki on his scarred eye.

 

“Yes Midoriya? Or you know what, Deku is better.” replied Lukic.

 

“Aren’t you the witch who’s been wanted for war crimes in Serbia since 1995?” asked Deku, failing to realize the controversy in his statement.

 

Lukic cackled. “Ah yes, but you can thank my ex boyfriend’s methods for getting me asylum in Britain. Any other questions?”

 

“OH OH OH!” cried Deku once more, with Todoroki this time quickly dodging before Deku shot his hand up again.

 

“Yes Deku?” said Lukic.

 

“Aren’t you also the witch who made up the concoction responsible for Jeremy Corbyn’s disembodied head being the eternal prime minister of Britain?” inquired Deku, shaking with anticipation for his answer.

 

Lukic closed her eyes and tried to hold back her tears from laughing. “Of course! Nice to know that somebody appreciates my achievements.”

 

Todoroki himself had a question to ask the mad professor regarding her sanity and competence, but Lukic interrupted him.

 

“No more questions! Now it is the time to begin for real!”

 

Todoroki sighed at Deku hogging the teacher’s attention, and evidently so were the other witches who hesitantly put their hands down.

 

Lukic cleared her throat. “Alright then. Our goal is to determine the ability of quirks found in heroes and most of the population to impact magical pharmacology, alchemy and potions making. I want all of you to write down your observations and theories because we professors and scholars will pursue further research on the subject once this semester is over. This instruction applies for your other classes too.”

 

Diana cracked her knuckles readied her note taking, which prompted Amanda to roll her eyes at her haughty attitude while Akko was too excited by the spectacle to pay attention to academics.

 

Lukic smirked. “Our discoveries can wonderu or disturbing, so I suggest we start with the small things yes?”

 

Deku smiled wide and grabbed his notebook. “First new discovery! This is so exciting.”

 

“I know right?” whispered Akko to him.

 

Lukic pointed at the heroes. “For the first experiment, we will determine if a magical cauldron used for potions brewing can be heated up using a quirk.”

 

While Deku started jotting that down, the rest of the class seemed confused by the rather anticlimactic nature of the task.

 

“That’s it?” questioned Bakugou.

 

“Yes! Imagine the implications of this experiment!” said Lukic.

 

Deku had wrote down what appeared to be a hundred different hypothesis already despite only a second passing. His glance darted back and forth between Bakugou and Todoroki as he spoke.

 

“Now there are a ton of different things we need to consider guys! Todoroki you can set things on fire with normal flames while Kaachan, you have to do it via explosions. Since magic is a lot less predictable in this regard, each of your methods can result in a dozen different…”

 

“Shut it!” yelled Bakugou.

 

“Thank you Bakugou!” nodded Lukic, much to everyone’s surprise. “Todoroki. Bakugou. You two go on over to the table next to you and try to light their miniature cauldron on fire. I want a good boil on the concoction inside.”

 

Todoroki and Bakugou glanced at each other and complied. They hopped on over to Amanda, Akko and Diana’s table, Deku trailing behind and furiously writing notes down despite nothing really happening.

 

Bakugou looked inside the mini cauldron that was perched on top of a burner like a normal chemical set in a science lab.

 

Todoroki looked in too, noting the blue liquid and asked Lukic before burning anything.

 

“This potion isn’t dangerous right?” he checked.

 

“Oh heavens, no. It’s a simple Stereoscopic Image Potion meant to show pictures. We’ll get to the harsher stuff later.” assured Lukic.

 

“I’ll go first then.” said Todoroki to Bakugou, the latter for once not particularly excited to take the lead.

 

Diana quickly reminded him. “Be careful! It’s a simple boil, not an excuse to set the class on fire!”

 

Todoroki ignored her and placed his hand under the suspended mini cauldron and lit up his hand containing his fire powers. He could hear some of the witches yelp and hide behind cover, thinking he just unleashed a giant roaring blaze instead of a tiny flame. Both Diana and Deku were recording observations while the sparkles in Akko’s eyes glowed brighter as she witnessed history being made.

 

“Hey it’s working!” called out Amanda when she noticed the liquid potion starting to boil.

 

After a moment, Lukic called him out to stop. “That should be enough! Now Diana, extract the potion and place a drop on the table nearby.”

 

“Understood.” nodded Diana, who whipped out her wand and using a form of telekinesis, placed some of it in a vial.

 

Now Deku’s eyes were glowing. “The moment of truth is before us!”

 

“Dork.” muttered Bakugou and Amanda, which caught both off by surprise.

 

Once she was sure the potion stopped bubbling, Diana lightly placed a drop of it on the desk. Sure enough, steam emitted from the evaporated liquid, and in the cloud a series of images appeared before everyone.

 

Deku gasped and gazed at the image of rough looking army men playing some instruments. “Whoa. It’s just like those old timey pictures. Who are these people professor Lukic?”

 

“Oh, that’s my old boyfriend’s band from a long time ago.” Lukic answered.

 

“Cooooool!” whispered Deku. “And the picture changed! Is that young witch you?”

 

“Yes, it is.” confirmed Lukic.

 

Everyone in the class glanced at the picture of the young Lukic with one of the army men that was clearly her boyfriend walking down some war-torn street. They then looked back at the current Lukic and back again at her younger self.

 

“I can’t believe you’re the same lady.” admitted Bakugou.

 

Deku’s eyes widened when the image changed again. “It’s another picture! That’s clearly you and your lover in war-time Belgrade and you’re….you’re….”

 

Deku faced away, tears flowing from his wide open eyes once he realized what the image really meant. Even the rest of the class sans Sucy was now twice as afraid of their eccentric magical pharmaceutical and potions teacher.

 

Bakugou wasn’t as moved but was still taken. “I wonder what the professor did to avoid the UN firing squad.”

 

“I’m not in the mood to find out.” replied Todoroki, whose arm was then promptly grabbed by Akko.

 

“YOU DID IT! The first cross magic and quirk experiment ever!” cheered Akko.

 

“That didn’t really prove anything though.” frowned Todoroki.

 

“I agree. We need another test,” remarked Lukic. “Bakugou, it’s your turn now.”

 

Bakugou shrugged and placed his hand under the cauldron. He lit up an explosion, which rather than just boiling the potion once more, also sent the cauldron flying upwards.

 

Everyone took cover as the hot pot flew in the sky, sans Deku who was still busy taking notes about the flying cauldron that he failed to dodge it in time. With a loud SMACK, Deku was knocked to the ground with a small burn mark over his face. At least it wasn’t too serious.

 

Akko rushed to Deku and cradled his bewildered head in her arms. “DEKU! Speak to me!”

 

Deku tried to adjust his senses, but upon noticing how close Akko was practically hugging him, he semi fainted once more.

 

“Apologize you meanie!” huffed Akko to Bakugou.

 

“Not my fault he was too busy being a nerd to dodge.” defended Bakugou.

 

“That is sort of true,” noted Lukic. “But please use tiny flames if you can.”

 

Diana noted Deku’s condition. “Akko, I think your cuddling is making him worse.”

 

All the while, the spilled concoction started evaporating into steam, and a dozen pictures of Lukic and her accordion playing war criminal boyfriend in ex-Yugoslavia started playing.

 

“Alright, my theory is about to prove true, but we need one more test on a different cauldron,” instructed Lukic. “I want Todoroki and Bakugou to head on over to Ms. Sucy’s station right there.”

 

Todoroki and Bakugou glanced at the rather apathetic Sucy, with Hannah and Barbara on opposite sides of the table shivering from fear. Inside her cauldron was a purplish powder, instead of a liquid, but it didn’t cross their mind to question the situation just yet.

 

Todoroki took the lead as he approached the new cauldron, and lit his tiny flame once more.

 

This time however, the powdery potion inside the cauldron detonated and sent the whole thing flying up in the sky once more. With yet another loud SMACK, Deku was the unfortunate victim of a flying cauldron yet again.

 

Akko darted to Deku once more and held his head, tears flowing from her eyes.

 

“My poor little Deku! You don’t deserve this!” yelled Akko.

 

“Akko, stop cradling him.” requested Diana.

 

“Are you kidding me? It’s hilarious.” countered Amanda.

 

“What was that?” frowned Todoroki.

 

“It’s an explosive powder potion. You like it?” asked Sucy.

 

“You should have warned me before I detonated it!” scolded Todoroki.

 

“You never asked like the last time.” teased Sucy.

 

“Todoroki’s right,” pointed Diana. “If you changed up your ingredients and made it more powerful, we would end up like one of Bakugou’s victims.”

 

Bakugou grinned. “Still, I’d say that’s a pretty good potion right there.”

 

All the witches practically rolled their eyes at Bakugou’s remark, but this just made his expression a whole lot smugger.

 

“Of course,” said Bakugou, lighting up a small explosive in his hand. “It can’t compare to my version that’s better in every way.”

 

“Wanna bet?” propositioned Sucy.

 

“Don’t get into shit you know you’ll lose.” defended Bakugou.

 

“I mean it’s just gunpowder.” added Todoroki.

 

Sucy and quite a few of the witches looked offended. Potions, alchemy and pharmaceuticals were everything to Sucy at Luna Nova. Todoroki nearly triggered her breaking point.

 

“Excuse me?” hissed Sucy.

 

“It’s gunpowder.” repeated Todoroki.

 

Diana took Sucy’s side. “It’s made up of way more exotic ingredients than simple gunpowder used in firearms, giving it an array of magical properties conventional explosives could never hope to have.”

 

“Oh, so it’s an unnecessarily complicated version of gunpowder. Got it.” laughed Bakugou.

 

“Eh, he’s got a point there. I think.” admitted Amanda. Her history of pranks sometimes had her using conventional gunpowder instead of the potion equivalent since it was easier to use and cause mass mayhem.

 

“Let’s review!” commanded Lukic before anyone could take the argument further. “So does anyone know the implications of what we’ve just witnessed?”

 

The class was mostly silent, sans Deku mummering to himself what the answer would be. Diana thus decided to take the initiative and raised her hand.

 

“That fire from a quirk is no different from than fire from magic...or conventional means in activating a potion’s properties?” answered Diana.

 

“Correct, isn’t it riveting?” replied Lukic.

 

“Oh wow, who would have guessed.” muttered Bakugou under his breath.

 

“You’re right,” agreed Diana. “There isn’t that much value in this lesson. Especially since heroes don’t seem to be careful as they should around potions.”

 

“Oh yeah, because if we brought in actual gunpowder to a classroom, we’d just detonate it willy nilly right?” countered Bakugou, ignoring his hypocrisy.

 

Deku meanwhile looked like he had just discovered the cure for aging. “This hypothesis needs further testing! We’re on the verge of something great, so Todoroki and Kaachan, could you guys try repeating your actions…”

 

“Bite me.” interrupted Bakugou.

 

“Rude.” pouted Akko.

 

“For our next test, we will see what effects certain potions have when they are consumed by those with quirks.” told Lukic.

 

“Wait, we’re going to be tested on?” frowned Todoroki.

 

Amanda burst out laughing. “Oh man, you guys are in for something great.”

 

Lotte piped up. “I tried to warn Sucy, but she insisted to Ms. Lukic.”

 

Sucy grinned quite smugly at the heroes. She was especially ecstatic that she could have her revenge on Bakugou and Todoroki for their quips on potion magic.

 

Even the enthusiastic Deku was a little worried. “Um, are we sure this is a good idea?”

 

Akko piped up in their defense. “Yeah. We gotta haze them a little more before we get to the really gritty stuff.”

 

Lukic laughed. “Oh don’t worry, Sucy and I went over the potions this morning. Nothing will scar our new guests. At least permanently.”

 

“Oh hell no! You ain’t touching me! Why would we let you experiment on us?” questioned Bakugou, particularly to the excited Sucy.

 

“Manilla massacre. Comfort women. A dozen other things you guys did to us in World War II to justify this.” bluntly stated Sucy.

 

“Oh yeah.” blurted Deku with shame.

 

“She got us there.” complied Todoroki.

 

Bakugou raised an eyebrow. “I mean I guess you’re right, but shouldn’t that mean Akko has to be experimented on too?”

 

“Akko has been tortured enough by me, especially this class.” told Sucy, next to a nodding Akko who was clearly flashing back to some unsavory times in this class.

 

“Indeed she has,” confirmed Lukic. “Now get ready.”

 

Lotte cleared her throat and motioned the boys to her. “Um, my potion is a vegetation growth spell that will cause a plant so sprout on your skin. It’s actually pretty safe and painless.”

 

The boys glanced at each other, and silently complied to take it. None of them wanted to look weak, and Lotte seemed to be trustworthy anyway.

 

Jasminka tried to reassure them. “I added some green tea leaves I thought you’d all enjoy. It makes drinking potions so much easier.”

 

Even Bakugou and Todoroki half grinned at that remark. The three of them hesitantly each picked up a cup and dunked it in the cauldron, careful not to get any of the potion on their skin, lest they suffer ill effects.

 

With the least enthusiastic cheers possible, they each drank the potion.

 

“Do you feel any different?” asked Akko.

 

“Not quite.” muttered Todoroki.

 

“Same.” noted Bakugou.

 

Diana noticed a smell and began sniffing the air. Other witches caught on and did the same.

 

“Is something burning?” asked Amanda.

 

All eyes were on Todoroki and Bakugou.

 

“I’m not lighting anything up.” said Todoroki, raising both hands for proof.

 

“Surprisingly, neither am I.” added Bakugou, displaying his hands like Todoroki.

 

“It’s still coming from you two.” noted Diana getting close to Bakugou and Todoroki, which almost made the two of them blush. Luckily for their pride, they managed to hold it.

 

The two heroes began smelling their arms and soon caught on as well. They were so used to the smell of flames that they usually ignored it. Something was burning inside them.

 

Todoroki, quite literally on the other hand, noticed a different smell coming from the arm that emitted his ice powers.

 

“One part of me smells like a campfire, the other smells like a minty sundae.” observed Todoroki.

 

“I don’t think that’s a coincidence.” suggested Bakugou.

 

Diana got it. “Quirks are physical abilities right?”

 

The two heroes nodded.

 

Diana began jotting notes down as she spoke. “The plants from that potion grow inside of a person before sprouting, but my guess is that the fires that exist in both of your bodies effectively burn them before they have the chance to do so. Well, Todoroki your other half is an ice quirk, but that isn’t ideal growth for whatever plant Lotte utilized for the potion either.”

 

“Now I wish I had those quirks whenever Sucy uses them on me.” sighed Akko.

 

Amanda placed a finger on her chin. “Wait, so if explodey boy and half and half boy can’t grow plants inside them because of their quirks, then that means…”

 

Everyone turned around to face Deku, who had quite a lot of plants sprouting from his arms. Some of them were quite big.

 

“Uh, a little help here.” whimpered Deku.

 

“Want me to burn those plants off of you?” laughed Bakugou.

 

Lotte placed a hand on her mouth. “No no no! This wasn’t supposed to happen! The plants should be really tiny.”

 

Akko figured it out first. “Oh my gosh! Deku, your quirk lets you supercharge a part of your body or something right?”

 

“Yeah, kinda.” whispered Deku, picking a few flowers growing from his arm.

 

“So it’s clear that he supercharged their growth, making a shrub grow larger than it should.” concluded Diana.

 

A moment passed and Deku was finally free of the plant growth that just vanished off him in a sparkling cloud. Interestingly his clothes remained undamaged and the flowers he picked were still around in his hand.

 

“You okay?” asked Akko.

 

“Yep, thanks,” nodded Deku. He noted the three flowers he still had. “Uh, I don’t know what to do with these, so do you…”

 

Akko took it the other way. “Aw, one for me, Diana and Amanda as thanks for being your guides right? That’s so sweet.”

 

“But,” frowned Deku.

 

Akko didn’t let him finish and yanked the flowers. She passed them onto an amused Diana and Amanda, the rest of the witches giggling and Bakugou laughing at Deku’s pathetic face. All Todoroki did was bite his lip in confusion.

 

Lukic got everyone’s attention again. “Now it seems we are getting somewhere more interesting. Since witches and wizards don’t have quirks, it seems bodies to react differently to spells based on the immaterial essence within. We will try this again with another potion prepared next you little heroes.”

 

“What’s in this thing?” asked Bakugou.

 

“This one is called ‘A Drop For All’,” explained Sucy before anyone else could, the name of the potion making Deku squirm under his breath. “Basically you take it and then shoot out water like a firehose. It’s so fun to wake Akko up with.”

 

“Don’t remind me!” frowned Akko.

 

“I can kinda predict where this is going.” stated Todoroki, dunking his cup in the cauldron. Bakugou and Deku did the same.

 

They each took the potion and the expected results arose. Deku began shooting a massive wave of water from his hands, the nature of the potion amplified by his quirk, and sent him crashing to the other side of the room.

 

As Akko tended to Deku, the rest of the class observed Todoroki and Bakugou. The former had half of his body emitting a hot steam from one side, while the other was frozen solid from an involuntary action.

 

Bakugou meanwhile was completely steaming, matched perfectly with his annoyed expression.

 

“Talk about smoking hot.” joked Amanda.

 

“Oh shut it before I turn explosive hot.” hissed Bakugou.

 

“You will have to wait for that Mr. Bakugou,” hinted Lukic. “We need to now test the ability of a magic nullifier potion on quirks.”

 

This caused the three heroes to freeze.

 

“Don’t worry, the strongest potion can only last for 5 minutes,” explained Lukic. “Of course it’s 5 minutes of pure torture for a witch and wizard to have their magical ability cancelled in the heat of danger, but this is a mostly controlled environment.”

 

“So it’s like Mr. Izawa’s quirk.” realized Deku.

 

“Still, I don’t wanna exactly risk losing my quirk.” admitted Todoroki.

 

“Yeah, I’ve got my plans for being a quirkless vigilante worked out, but God knows what that potion will do to us.” stated Bakugou.

 

“Scared aren’t ya?” teased Amanda, playing on his attitude.

 

This caused Bakugou to growl and he accordingly volunteered to go first. “Hit me with your best.”

 

Sucy giggled and practically out of nowhere handed the vial to Bakugou. He snatched it from her hand and swirled the beaker around.

 

The tension in the room was somewhat high, as it was the first time someone with a quirk was going to try a rare potion meant for temporarily nullifying an enemy’s spells.

 

Bakugou hesitated to drink it, taking a small whiff of it.

 

“What does it smell like?” asked Akko.

 

“Apples, funny enough.” told Bakugou. He finally took a sip of the thing as everyone watched with anticipation.

 

Deku, still fearing a repeat his quirkless days, piped up. “Um, can I skip this potion today?”

 

The rest of the witches and Todoroki forgot about Bakugou for a second as they faced him.

 

Deku nervously laughed. “I mean….I...haven’t really used this quirk as long as my two friends have, so like….I don’t wanna risk...”

 

“Come on Deku!” called out Bakugou, returning everyone’s attention towards him. “Having your quirk taken away for a moment isn’t that bad. Like you said Izawa does it all the time.”

 

Todoroki raised an eyebrow at Bakugou’s smiling expression. “What are you so happy about?”

 

“Oh nothing, it’s just that I’m glad this potion seems to work, is all.” assured Bakugou.

 

“So you really can’t perform any magic?” checked Diana.

 

“Not at all,” shook Bakugou, too innocently. “But maybe, if I tried hard enough, I might.”

 

“Ha!” scoffed Amanda. “Not even the strongest witch can overcome nullification potions or spells. I’ve tried when Finnelan restrained me once.”

 

“I mean, if I try really hard, I could.” hinted Bakugou.

 

“You won’t,” countered Sucy. “I made sure to use the strongest version of this potion, so we still got like four minutes to go.”

 

Akko’s eyes widened. “Um, guys I think Bakugou…”

 

Bakugou confirmed Akko’ fears. “See, I think if I could just snap my fingers like this…”

 

A loud _SNAP!_ was followed by a loud _BOOM!_

 

An explosion emitted from Bakugou’s hand, the shockwave sending all the students flying back a bit except for Todoroki who instinctively put up an ice shield.

 

Bakugou admired his work. Luckily his explosion was pointed upwards so he had the satisfaction of seeing everyone knocked down, while not risking any injuries that would land him in further trouble. While everyone had been distracted by Deku’s fearful remarks, he lit up a silent spark in his hand which had confirmed he could still use his quirk. All he needed then was some successful bait to make it all the funnier.

 

Lukic meanwhile hadn’t taken any risks the moment Bakugou drank the potion and had thus protected herself with a barrier spell. “Well children, what can we learn from this?”

 

“New theory.” coughed Diana as she got and opened her notebook. “You can’t apparently silence quirks with nullification potions and likely ditto for nullification spells.”

 

“And probably vice versa.” stammered Deku, thinking of Izawa’s quirk as he stood on his feet, helping Amanda and Akko up too.

 

The rest of the class was dedicated to silently putting everything back together. Bakugou of course had to do most of the work, but he had a ‘worth it’ expression the whole time.

 


	7. Lunch break

At Luna Nova’s Cafeteria, the witches were trying to enjoy their lunch break, but a great sense of unease was filling the atmosphere. Right in the area’s centermost table, Bakugou, Deku and Todoroki sat alone, a ring of empty tables surrounding them.

 

After potions and pharmaceutical class, the witches in Akko’s grade had their magic numerology class which the heroes didn’t need to attend since there was no way for professor Badcock to even integrate quirks into her curriculum. Deku still dragged Bakugou and Todoroki along to observe of course. However, their boredom got to the point where they dashed the moment Badcock had a breakdown at her own class’ tediousness and told them to save themselves by breaking for lunch early.

 

Of course, grabbing a table first meant that the witches knew where not to sit when they joined got to eat later. The result was the tables not surrounding them being rather overcrowded.

 

Soon enough, Akko, Diana and Amanda linked up with their usual friends and observed the situation at hand.

 

“Why isn’t anyone sitting next to them?” frowned Akko.

 

“Probably the same reason no one wants to be in the blast radius of a bomb.” noted Diana.

 

“But we’re being kinda rude...and you know...inhospitable or something.” replied Akko.

 

Amanda blew it off. “Eh, Bakugou has himself to blame after that stunt he pulled last class. I mean, it was hilarious I gotta admit, but ya know.”

 

Amanda’s gaze was focused on the heroes, who were apparently in the middle of an argument as Deku appeared to be apologizing for something that was setting Bakugou off, which prompted Todoroki trying to put an ice barrier between everyone.

 

Akko pouted. “He’s a brat. Still, we gotta show we’re the bigger person than him or else we’re just gonna prove to everyone that witches and wizards aren’t prepared to deal with the world!”

 

“If the modern world is filled with people like him, then maybe it’s not worth embracing.” suggested Diana.

 

“Well that’s easy for you to say Ms. I’m from a sheltered aristocratic family!” exclaimed Akko. “Where I’m from, quirks are a part of everyday life, so I gotta get these three future heroes to embrace magic or else no one in Japan will ever care about it!”

 

There was silence amongst Akko’s circle of friends. It was clear how personal the task was for her since bringing magic’s relevance back to Japan needed her to be in a position at least equal to the three star UA high students.

 

Lotte spoke up. “To be fair, Bakugou was experimented on...which most people aren’t fans of.”

 

All eyes were on Sucy. She shrugged and simply said “Meh, he’ll get used to it like Akko does.”

 

“I am not!” roared Akko.

 

Jasminka meanwhile finally finished chewing on her meal. “I think that we should try to focus on Deku. He’s the real sweetie of the three!”

 

“Exactly!” nodded Akko. “He’s the onewho gets me the most. Even if Bakugou remains a jerk and Todoroki remains apathetic, I can get at least one hero to spread the good word.”

 

“Yeah, if he doesn’t faint from shock!” joked Amanda.

 

Akko raised an eyebrow. “Huh?”

 

“The guy’s a nervous wreck when he’s not fighting villains. Like hell is he gonna have the charisma to bring magic back to your home. Doesn’t matter how good he is at punching.” explained Amanda.

 

“Are you kidding me!” replied Akko in a way that  looked like she was personally insulted. “Deku’s the kind of guy that would be swimming in fan girls back home!”

 

Everyone who could hear had their mouth drop. Except Jasminka who kept eating.

 

“Excuse me?” questioned Diana.

 

“Short pathetic boys that cry a lot are totally number one with girls in Japan right now.” explained Akko. “Especially if their hair looks like broccoli.”

 

Sucy slowly blinked. “I know Japan has sunk low before, but even that’s dumber than usual.”

 

Sucy blushed. “Deku’s cute, but Todoroki is kind of my prince charming guy. His personality is a little off though.”

 

Sucy sighed. “I’m not into boys, but if I were to guess, wouldn’t Bakugou be the hottest in ways more than one?”

 

Amanda thought about it. “Yeah, but when he’s angry he looks, sounds, and feels like an ugly goblin. Hard to look at.”

 

“And that’s most of the time.” added Diana, observing whatever fight was causing Deku to block a grab from Bakugou.

 

“Hotties or not, they’re gonna be number one soon, and as witches we shouldn’t let our name be dragged through the mud no matter how much ridicule we get.” said Akko.

 

“I agree on that last part, but if the world of heroes is full of people like Bakugou, then we can’t change their minds.” countered Diana.

 

“Well,” stammered Akko. “........You’re kinda of a coward too right now!”

 

“Excuse me!” shot back Diana.

 

“Come on, since when did anything in history get achieved by people being silent! We have to grab them by the horns!” announced Akko.

 

“Oh great, it’s her protester side again.” sighed Sucy.

 

“Just think of it like this, Deku represents all the radicals, Todoroki represents the moderates and Bakugou represents those stubborn reactionaries who won’t change.” stated Akko, climbing on the table, which grabbed everyone’s attention sans the still arguing heroes.

 

“Are you sure we can convince all of them though?” asked Sucy.

 

“Of course we can!” insisted Akko, hopping on the table.

 

She pointed to the heroes. “Just look!”

 

Her friends looked at them, but came up with nothing other than the fight between Deku and Bakugou having seemingly died down.

 

“What am I supposed to be getting?” inquired Amanda.

 

“Look at Bakugou’s uniform!” pointed Akko. “Notice something?”

 

“It makes him look more like a villain?” guessed Amanda.

 

“That and he’s wearing a tie!” said Akko. “When I see his pictures his online, Bakugou never wears ties. The fact that he didn’t burn his already means that there’s a tiny bit of him that we can get through. God knows how much he must’ve opened up after he was kidnapped by villains that one time.”

 

“Kidnapped?” repeated Lotte.

 

“It was big news back home, but moving on, I think there’s a little part of him that I can get around and open his evil little eyes!” suggested Akko. “And we can start by taking the initiative.”

 

“I appreciate your bravery Akko, but this almost seems like a lost cause.” sighed Diana, but even she was hesitant in her words for once.

 

“Come on, even if we can’t convince them that magic is still important, we can at least show them that we’re not a bunch of sissies!” exclaimed Akko, pointing a fist to the roof.

 

“Can I have your things once you’re exploded into a million pieces?” asked Sucy after a moment of silence.

 

“SURE!” agreed Akko, still pointing a fist in the air and yelling at the roof.

 

Diana closed her eyes. “Fine. I don’t think we’ll get through Bakugou or Todoroki, but I won’t let any of them push me around.”

 

“That, and Finnelan will fail us if we don’t do our duty.” noted Amanda.

 

“That’s the spirit! Besides, I know for a fact they’re the kind of people who like it when someone takes the lead.” smirked Akko, grabbing her lunch tray and making a dash for the heroes, her friends hesitantly following.

 

With a bright smile on her face, Akko approached the table the boys were sitting at. She could hear the other witches whispering things such as “rest in peace” or “they’re screwed” but they could all go to hell for what Akko cared.

 

She stood in front of the heroes, who glanced up at her with mixed expressions. Todoroki neutral, Bakugou hostile, and Deku welcoming as usual.

  
"Hey, you didn't think you could get away from us did ya?" smiled Akko eyes closed and head tilted to look as cute and non-threatening as possible.  
  
"You came here after us." replied Todoroki.  
  
"Oh you're so funny!" joked Akko, eyes still closed. "Come on, let's enjoy our first lunch together."  
  
Before anyone could respond, Akko nudged the other witches to take their seats next to the heroes. The boys already had some space between them, probably to desecrate another fight, so Akko placed herself right in the open chairs. Lotte was about to sit next to Bakugou, but one look at his devilish eyes was enough to excuse her on the other side. Jasminka by contrast, couldn’t be broken and remained smiling as she took Lotte’ place.

 

“Want some of my Shepard's pie?” offered Jasminka.

 

“Eat it yourself.” hissed Bakugou.

 

“More for me then!” cheered Jasminka.

 

“Why don’t you want more of that, it’s the best item on the menu.” said Akko, before she nudged her head to the other side very close to Deku.

 

“It’s great right?” asked Akko, in her cutest voice possible.

 

Deku blushed. “Um, yeah it is.” Akko was almost lips distance away from him which caused him to back off a bit, only to realize that he was dangerously close to Diana as well, who raised an eyebrow at him.

 

Deku audibly yelped and tried to face forward. He found Amanda, elbows on table and head in her hands, nudging forward at him with a sly grin to deliberately exaggerate his mood.

 

Deku tried to ease his thoughts by looking down, where he noticed that Akko’s, Diana’s and Amanda’s skirts were far shorter than the average witch’s here. Why did he have to be a leg and thigh man?

 

While Deku was lost in his freak out, Akko tried to make conversation.

 

“So, how are you finding it all here?” she inquired.

 

“It has a UA feel for what it’s worth.” answered Todoroki.

 

Bakugou huffed. “Yeah, but for teaching magic so it’s like the opposite of UA in being relevant.”

 

Diana rolled her eyes. “How do you think we feel about all the stuff you learn in your little hero and quirk schools?”

 

“Difference is that we’re future while you’ve rotted in obscurity for centuries,” replied Bakugou. “Really, how pathetic is it that you’ve all been so damn compliant in letting your culture fade away?”

 

“Cool it Bakugou.” warned Todoroki.

 

Amanda snickered. “That’s gonna be hard for him.”

 

“Really, we wouldn’t even know about this place if it wasn’t for Akko screwing up bad enough for us to drop in here.” stated Bakugou.

 

“Hey!” pouted Akko, bringing her face up to Bakugou’s, the latter surprised at her resilience.

 

“Don’t talk to her like that!” stood up Deku, which would have normally resulted in a firebomb from Bakugou.

 

“At least your stupid face knows there’s a problem,” acknowledged Bakugou to Akko. “Can't say the same for you reclusive idiots.”

 

“Not true!” smiled Jasminka. “I plan to open witch cafes in Moscow and Kiev that everyone will love.”

 

“That’s your stupid master plan?” checked Todoroki.

 

“Of course!” beamed Jasminka.

 

Bakugou twitched. “Does anything get passed Ms. eyes always shut here?!”

 

“No.” bluntly stated Akko, Amanda, Diana, Sucy and Lotte at the same time. Even Constanze, whose silent presence went largely unnoticed by the group, was shaking her head.

 

Todoroki half grinned. He knew how to keep a largely cool exterior around Bakugou, so if his exterior was an icy cold fortress, then Jasminka’s was made out of hard steel.

 

“It’s this kind of destructive and arrogant attitude that makes wizards and witches hesitant to fraternize with the hero world.” pointed Diana.

 

Bakugou laughed. “Oh, you’re calling us arrogant? Look who’s talking.”

 

Todoroki twitched and took a deep breath. “For the love of God, can you at least try to accept or hold the olive branch for once!”

 

This caused everyone to remain still. Seeing Todoroki this emotional wasn’t no longer for the heroes, but even they knew this meant something was serious.

 

Todoroki scowled. “I’m having it up to here with your stupid attitude! I know this is how you act in UA, but right now we’re pretty much the ambassadors to another culture. Yeah, I think that their seclusion is stupid and their fault too, but you’re probably just gonna drive them further into it!”

 

It was as if the pupils in Bakugou’s eyes vanished. “Further into it? They’ve all been declining long before the first quirk showed up by hundreds of years! I don’t think they can go any further, but I wouldn’t be surprised.”

 

“Oh what do you know about our history?” scoffed Diana.

 

“Unfortunately a bit since Deku won't shut up about it when we’re alone!” growled Bakugou, causing Deku to almost shiver, but he kept his brave face on.

 

Akko knitted her eyebrows. “See, some people here know what struggles we’ve been through.”

 

“Last I recall you’re not exactly from a magical family.” pointed Diana, which caused Akko’s anger to be redirected towards her.

 

“And the party splits.” sighed Amanda.

 

“I’ll get to your blood purity thing in a minute,” foreshadowed Bakugou. “Till then, I wanna know how the hell it took one damn industrial revolution in Britain to wipe out your relevance.”

 

“Ordinary people embraced technology, like they embraced quirks. There wasn’t any room for magic in this new world.” bitterly stated Diana.

 

“Oh, and you just capitulated like that?” sneered Bakugou. “Because if Deku’s shitty rants are anything to go by, your history is just blank pages from 1800 up until now. Chariot, who you all hate, was the only witch worth a damn lately. You’re all lucky if something relevant happened involving magic once per decade. All because you idiots were so insulted by technology.”

 

Todoroki pointed to Constanze, who was building another magical robot. “But isn’t what she’s doing embracing two worlds?”

 

Bakugou smirked. “Yeah, Constanze here at least has her shit together. But she doesn’t talk much and isn’t trying to make history here is she?”

 

Constanze shook her head no.

 

“Hey, aren’t we the only ones allowed to use modern tech here?” frowned Deku.

 

“Shut it nerd! As far as I’m concerned she has my permission to violate that shitty rule!” roared Bakugou, who Constanze gave a thumbs up. “Seriously, the only one here willing to to move forward and she can’t even legally do that.”

 

Todoroki glanced at the robot and was rather impressed. “You know, we have a bunch of support hero courses back in UA. Have you ever considered signing up for one of those? I’d kill for those robots.”

 

Constanze placed a finger on her chin, actually considering it.

 

Amanda rolled her eyes. “You don’t have to be a traitor.”

 

“And why shouldn’t she?” questioned Bakugou. “I’m waiting to be convinced, but magic had its chance. Quirks are the future. Quirks are the present. Quirks will make history.”

 

“We’re making history now with this course aren’t we?” defended Akko.

 

“It might be too late for that.” noted Todoroki. “Isn’t it true that people with quirks can’t use magic? And that once magic stays in your blood it ends your ability to use a quirk?”

 

“It is.” nodded Akko.

 

Bakugou smirked. “And that brings me up to the blood purity part. You all are too caught up in your little communities that you missed the chance to ever stop the age of quirks from happening. Just think! Maybe I’d have magic powers in another realm.”

 

Todoroki shrugged. “I do kinda think quirks were nature’s way of giving most humans powers they should have had centuries ago.”

 

“And where have we ended up with that?” remarked Diana. “Destructive heroes with no regard to collateral damage, and worst of all, villains that plague society everyday!”

 

“Are you crazy? As if there were never any bad witches or wizards.” replied Bakugou.

 

“The correct term for a bad wizard is a warlock.” said Diana, trying to muster all the snobbery she could. “There would only be a single bad witch or wizard per decade in a one, maybe two parts of the world at most. The modern world needs fully trained superheroes to keep villains in line every single day! That shouldn’t be normal.”

 

Akko nodded. “I’m not gonna lie guys. Japan is kinda scary if you don’t have a quirk.”

 

“I know that how that felt.” agreed Deku, whose empathy made Akko place a hand on his lap, a  warm smile on her face. Of course Deku was almost paralyzed again.

 

“I haven’t exactly heard about the last bad witch or warlock since like, ever.” concurred Amanda.

 

“Still a fallacy to think that if magic replaced quirks, we’d be a bit more peaceful no?” questioned Todoroki.

 

“The fact is that quirks are physical abilities rather than a fine art, so therefore we have a mass villain problem. Statistics don’t lie.” retorted Diana.

 

“Well, your slimy little ancestors didn’t get it on with puny non magic folk, so I guess your ideal world isn’t gonna happen.” challenged Bakugou.

 

Akko placed a finger on her chin. “I mean, it would have been just easier to train more witches and wizards like me.”

 

“Didn’t you still get some discrimination for coming from a non magic family?” noted Todoroki.

 

“I was used to being left out for being quirkless, and it’s gotten better,” defended Ako. “Once I graduate, I want to encourage more quirkless kids on my path.”

 

“Right!” added Deku. “All those quirkless kids can learn how to use magic. They can become support heroes like Constanze, or heroes in their own right!”

 

“Yay!” beamed Akko, placing a hand on Deku’s shoulder and shooting her other arm up. “Why can’t we be heroes too?”

 

“Honestly that’s because I’ve yet to find a wizard or witch that thinks it’s cool or worth it.” explained Amanda.

 

“And it’s just like Chariot all over again,” noted Diana. “That isn’t what magic stands for. It’s a sophisticated practice with each established magical family having their own specific role to play in its study. Not something that can be unleashed to the masses unless you want the apocalypse to play out early.”

 

“There you go again,” noted Bakugou. “Think your decline is our fault? You all keep shooting yourselves in the foot. Constanze fiddling with magical tech? You ban her from doing that. Akko proves the quirkless can learn magic? It’s a little too late for a magical revival because quirkless numbers are declining. Breed quirks outta existence? You had your chance and you still play family politics.”

 

Bakugou took a deep breath. He was always the jerk. He didn’t see the hypocrisy in his statements, guilty of many of the things he accused magic folk of doing. Still, the bully could have a way with words when he wasn’t spouting death threats.

 

“Bakugou’s right, we’ve been sabotaging ourselves.” admitted Akko.

 

“But I still see a big turn around.” encouraged Deku.

 

“Duh, but we can’t do that on our own without outside help,” replied Akko. “But some people on both sides don’t wanna build a bridge.”

 

“Or they’re just too occupied with other things.” defended Amanda.

 

Todoroki gave an unusual grin. “I mean at the end of the day, I still we aren’t too different.”

 

Everyone was now looking at Todoroki, whose semi devilish smirk grew.

 

“Oh, let me make it clear that I hate family elitism when it comes to special powers. Trying to form cartels on knowledge. Hating outsiders who want to learn and train. I mean look at me.”

 

Todoroki pointed to his scar. “I’m the product of neo eugenics for God’s sake. My old man’s an ass who is more than happy to keep his competition in line. As far as I know the most powerful quirks are gonna start being controlled by a few families while the rest will have to make due with useless quirks or turn to villainy.”

 

Todoroki intended to point to Constanze, only to realize she had gone chasing her robot that was attempting a rampage. But he digressed.

 

“In regards to tech? I don’t know about you guys, but isn’t it weird that you can look at a picture as far back as say….2020 and realize how similar it looks to our world?”

 

The group around him thought about it, and they had to concur.

 

“Face it, we didn’t do as good of a job embracing technology as we should have. All our new tech is dedicated to making heroes better at fighting villains and the other way around. Nobody gives a damn about innovating for general leisure or welfare like they did centuries ago.”

 

“I did always say we may have been exploring the universe by now if it wasn’t for quirks.” admitted Deku.

 

Bakugou tried to blow him off. “I think you’re making some stupid false equivalents. That’s a cowardly way out.”

 

“Oh, I think magic and quirks do have their differences,” admitted Todoroki. “But right now I say we’re walking down the same path these people did.”

 

“I don’t think quirks are going away though.” shook Amanda.

 

“Not that, but the problems still plaguing your society are plaguing ours,” clarified Todoroki. “Right now, we’re playing a game of no you, no you, no you. We’re all hypocrites right here, so as far as I know we have no choice but to rectify our problems together if we want magic to stick around while ensuring quirks don’t create some stagnant oligarchy.”

 

“YAY!” beamed Akko. “You get it!”

 

Amanda placed a finger on her chin. “That’s, actually pretty true half and half.”

 

Todoroki sighed, he really hated being this talkative. “No worries.”

 

Amanda looked at him with an ecstatic expression. “I mean it. I’m not an old lady, but it would suck if I grew up in the world that stayed the same. It’s fun now, but even Luna Nova is getting stale. All those adventures I crave, the the pranks I pull and challenges for me to overcome, I want something new. God knows I want start messing with you hero chumps someday too.”

 

“And we’ll make sure you pay the price.” joked Todoroki, in a manner that almost made it sound like he was still brooding.

 

It was now Deku’s turn to get up on the table. “This is awesome. We got more people on board with Akko’s cause here. We all have of our differences and some people think we can’t get along. But I think both of our worlds are closer than they are different and we need each other to overcome what’s holding us back and apart!”

 

Deku almost started screaming on the top of his lungs. “So that we can create a world where we live like equals! No stagnation! No quirk or magical oligarchies! Where everyone has the chance to be a hero! Whether you have magic, quirks or something else, it shouldn’t matter! A world where one can contribute for all and all can contribute for one!”

 

“Calm down Karl Marx.” bluntly said Sucy, eager to get a word out.

 

Deku sat down placed a finger on his chin. “Well, I mean my birthday is on the same day as the establishment of the Japanese Communist party and.,.”

 

Deku almost stated that his quirk was called one for all, but was distracted by Akko’s big smile and giggle.

 

“Uh, what did I say?” frowned Deku.

 

“You should see her during any form of social protest,” teased Amanda. “Total bleeding heart.”

 

Diana, who came from a noble family, rolled her eyes, but pressed on.

 

“You two are so alike!” beamed Jasminka. “Just a bunch of eager delicious cinnamon rolls!”

 

Deku blushed. Akko smiled wider.

 

“We are huh?” cooed Akko.

 

“T-totally.” nervously chirped Deku.

 

“Well, I can tell one way you aren’t.” snickered Amanda at Deku’s display.

 

“True, but anything resembling another Deku is twice the trouble for me.” groaned Bakugou.

 

“How do you think I feel about another Akko?” lightened up Diana.

 

Bakugou and Diana almost stared at each other, which didn't go unnoticed by the others. Yet another playful quip was shared.

 

“I’m curious to know who I’m like.” pondered Todoroki.

 

Lotte gave it a thought. “Eh, I’d say you have Amanda’s coolness, but Diana’s seriousness. Bakugou, you have Amanda’s tendency to show off, but you’re also uptight like Diana.”

 

“I am not uptight!” yelled Bakugou and Diana at the same time.

 

Bakugou pointed a finger. “Compare me to your friends one more time and you’re gonna regret it. You hear me!”

 

“Kaachan!” scolded Deku. “Cut it out!”

 

Todoroki knocked Bakugou’s hand away. “NO! I don’t give a damn what you think about magic, but you are not going to continue being an asshole to someone just trying to be nice. You’re too far gone in UA and maybe Diana can be difficult, but for the love of God take the high ground for once in your life!”

 

Bakugou just took a deep breath.

 

Todoroki did the same. “High ground….you’re gonna need it if you ever want to be a hero.”

 

“Todoroki’s right, you don’t have to like anyone, but...please...just try for once.” requested Deku.

 

Bakugou raised an eyebrow. He never saw Todoroki or Deku this defensive about a group of people before. Something was making them act up. He had a feeling regarding what it was, given who the two were looking at, but that was something that couldn’t have developed so soon. The seeds were clearly there at least.

 

Since he didn’t need to see Deku look more like a wimp or fight with Todoroki, all Bakugou did was cross his arms at bite his lip.

 

Diana pretty much mimicked his motion. “I don’t think our worlds our compatible, even if I admit your’s is the future. But I will NOT take any more of your shit.”

 

Akko gasped. “She swore!”

 

Amanda smirked. “Finally, right?”

 

Diana actually struggled not to laugh. “We’re not gonna stop having this argument, I think. Until then though I will not let you walk over me, humiliate me and try to ruin my experience here. Otherwise I’ll use you as target for new curses and hexes.”

 

Sucy raised an eyebrow. “Good luck with that. Lab rats aren’t fun when they have sharp senses and explosive tendencies.”

 

Bakugou smiled. “Well, you don’t back down. I like that. I just wish your people didn’t when the modern world hit.”

 

Akko spoke up. “It’s still hitting us, and we’re not gonna hide anymore.”

 

All of a sudden a voice called out that almost made everyone jump.

 

“You really should work as an activist one day Akko.” complimented Ursula, who was holding Constanze up by one hand, and her toy robot by the other. The latter was still trying to break free and unleash havoc.

 

“How much did you hear?” asked Amanda.

 

“Just the last few parts,” answered Ursula.

 

Deku tried to defend everyone. “We’re really sorry! We’re just having a..a.a bunch of mixed emotions because of how sudden this thing all is, right guys?”

 

“Right, well I’d ask you keep those emotions in check because of your upcoming class.” told Ursula, knowing that there was still a powder keg amongst the groups that only needed a spark.

 

Akko’s eyes widened. “Oh yeah, what do we have next?”

 

“Broom flying,” answered Diana. “Which I would recommend we go to now if we don’t want to be late.”

 

“Aren’t we gonna have to practice dodging quirks for this month?” brought up Lotte.

 

“Oh no!” blurted Deku and Todoroki, noticing Bakugou’s slasher smile.

 

“Why oh no?” asked Amanda.

 

Todoroki bit his lip. “I think we’re about to set magical and hero relations back another century.

-

**Authors note: What should have been a shorter chapter ended up much longer. Anyway, it was pretty fun to write Todoroki and Amanda finally coming to terms with the whole issue, with reservations of course. I noticed that OVA Diana and Amanda have elements of both Todoroki and Bakugou which makes them a little more dynamic in my eyes for this fic. Series Diana is more just like Todoroki while her OVA portrayal has some of Bakugou’s antagonisms. Series Amanda I found to be more like a “nicer Bakugou”, but her OVA depiction also gives her a lot more of Todoroki’s aloofness. Both depictions are still pretty fun to write.**

 


	8. Bonus: Class 1A reacts

Back in UA High, Mr. Aizawa was wrapping up Class 1A’s morning announcements. While Bakugou, Todoroki and Deku pursued the current month with an abroad education, class continued as normal for the rest of 1A.

What Aizawa was really savoring however, was his final bit of hilarious news.

“And lastly, I’d like to update you all on your friends in Britain.” announced Aizawa, which immediately caused the class to snap to attention.

“Looks like they’re not going to be attending a training course with the British Special Forces due to a certain incident.” told Aizawa, resulting in gasps from the students, as they knew how much Deku and Todoroki were looking forward to the trip while Bakugou was looking forward to showing them up during it.

“Oh man, what happened!” yelled Kirishima, the only one was probably concerned for Bakugou instead of just the other two.

Aizawa grinned. “Let’s just say it involved magical and daemonic forces, and since a young witch was involved too, the three of them are going to instead be attending Luna Nova Magical Academy for a month.”

Most of the class was confused, only a few having heard of any magical school to be frank. Still, the idea of Deku, Todoroki and Bakugou, three star hero students, attending a magical school was both humorous and concerning given that nothing like this had ever happened before.

Mineta however, rose up with tears on his face as he yelled the juiciest part of the story with all the screeching jealousy he could muster.

“BUT THAT’S AN ALL GIRL SCHOOL!” cried out Mineta like a shrieking banshee.

Now the class was torn between deciding whether all that or Luna Nova’s magical nature was more controversial.

Kirishima on the other hand was ecstatic. “All right! My man Bakugou is gonna learn magic and hook up with the ladies!”

IIda face palmed. “Kirishima are you serious about that last part! Do you not know how Bakugou has felt for the last few weeks? Anybody would have figured it out by now.”

“Huh, no.” frowned Kirishima.

Kaminari laughed. “No wonder he gave up! Hope the witches aren’t as dense.”

Kirishima rolled his eyes and blew them off, not caring for their teasing.

Uraraka meanwhile slumped in her chair, biting her lip at the prospect of Deku being surrounded by yet more women. Last girl she had to worry about was Melissa Shield, and God knew how many European babes would take a liking to Deku. 

Yaoyorozu meanwhile looked distraught, and Uraraka tried to mask her envy with a little quip.

“Scared Todoroki might have a few admirers there eh?” nervously grinned Uraraka.

Yaoyorozu sighed. “Well, Todoroki and Deku to be honest.”

Uraraka eyes shot open. “Oh not you too!” 

Uraraka whimpered. “They’ve probably seen him shirtless by now.” She bagan sliding down her chair, having read too much harem and shoujo to know where this was all going.


	9. Broom Flying Class

**Authors note: Reminder that we are in the LWA OVA timeline where Akko can technically fly a broom, but like a lunatic as opposed to being unable at all.**

 

Everyone gathered on the field, the witches clutching their brooms, while the heroes stood on the other side. For once it was because professor Nelson instructed them to align themselves that way, instead of self segregation.

 

Professor Nelson stood in between the two groups as she explained the lesson. “For the past few years, you witches have flown your brooms in the confines of a magical setting. Now, that’s fine for you young ones. BUT, the world isn’t mostly magical, and is populated by people whose quirks are often unpredictable and in the case of these three gentleman, highly lethal.”

 

Deku tried to sheepishly smile and wave to reduce the stressful situation, but Bakugou wouldn’t stop showing his goblin murder face no matter how many times Todoroki kept elbowing him to stop.

 

“Therefore!” exclaimed Nelson. “For the next month you will practice dodging these three in the sky for as long as possible. Now, most of you are not expected to last even a minute.”

 

That did little to help the mood, but it was true.

 

Nelson glanced at Diana and Amanda. “Some of you however, will be able to give these three young heroes a run for their money.”

 

“Like hell they will!” growled Bakugou.

 

Nelson raised an eyebrow at Bakugou, Todoroki and Deku, but wasn’t mad. “Now, would you three agree with me that using the literal top three hero students in Japan is overkill for this lesson?”

 

“Very overkill!” noted Deku. He thought the whole thing was crazy. It seemed just like the class where someone could easily die, but he remembered that explained many of UA’s ocurses too.

 

He couldn’t believe the world once had conventions against these types of school courses, but the hero lobby probably threw them out long ago.

 

Nelson stood tall. “It is indeed, BUT if any of you witches can survive being blasted at for an extended period of time, you’ll have no trouble avoiding any of the lesser quirks on your flights!”

 

“Faulty logic, but okay.” whispered Todoroki.

 

Bakugou pointed at the witches, his mouth almost drooling from the bloodlust that concealed his normally handsome features. “I’m not gonna hold back against any of you! So don’t you dare hold back against me!”

 

Most of the witches hid behind someone, mostly the unmoved Jasminka, Amanda and Diana.

 

“We are so dead!” gulped Lotte.

 

Akko skipped in front of them, waving her hand wildly to grab their attention. “Everyone! He’s not saying that because he hates us, he’s saying that because he considers us worthy of his full power!”

 

“Both parts are true!” roared Bakugou, whose mouth was then sealed shut by Todoroki’s ice once more. Deku could only bury his face in his hands.

 

Akko clasped her hands. “He did this at the UA sports festival! He’ll go all out because he doesn’t expect any of us to hold back. Let’s all show him what we’re made of.”

 

“Hell yeah!” agreed Amanda, taking the ordeal rather easily given that she was one of the top broom flyers in the class.

 

“So would you like to go first?” teased Diana.

 

Akko smiled sheepishly. “Um, I still need to warm up. I...eh...got my broom last.”

 

Akko vanished into the crowd. She couldn’t exactly fly a broom at all no matter how hard she tried. She didn’t need anyone to knock her down because there was nothing to knock her down from. The last thing she wanted to do was embarrass herself in front of the heroes.

 

Bakugou melted the ice on his mouth. “The real world is gonna come at you with with a fiery blaze! You gotta face it or die!”

 

Nelson failed to notice Akko trying to slink away and continued to lecture the crowd. “Bakugou’s right, while we’re avoiding extremes, flying a broom is no joke. You’re vulnerable whether it be against a villain with a quirk or a wicked witch or warlock...Or you could be flying over Afghanistan in the 1980s to conduct reconnaissance on the conflict where you’re then attacked by a Soviet helicopter. I mean a Hind D! I thought those were just a myth! It then starts shooting at you with insane firepower and when you fail to dodge in time...Timmy...Timmy...TIMMY!”

 

“Wow, you broke her brain!” joked Amanda to Bakugou.

 

Nelson took a minute to stop shivering from her air force memories and got ahold of herself. “Right, so all of you will take off from here, fly for as long as possible until one of the heroes knocks you down or they collapse from exhaustion.”

 

“It’s not gonna be the last one!” warned Bakugou.

 

The witches braced themselves. The memory of the heroes slaughtering the demons like they were nothing was fresh on their minds from yesterday. Even if lethality was to be avoided, no one wanted to end up as ash, a frozen popsicle, or a human donut with a hole in their center.

 

“Lotte, you’re up first.” instructed Nelson.

 

Lotte’s eyes widened. “But, wasn’t Akko right…” She realized that Akko was no longer next to her in line as she was originally, and thus made her first.

 

Lotte gulped and headed to the take off point, waiting for Nelson to start the trial. She glanced at the three heroes, who all readied their quirks for an attack.

 

Bakugou’s hands were lit with explosions, his rage clear. Todoroki had fire and ice powers blazing from either side of his body, a concentrated gaze on his face, while Deku was only charging up a small bit of his quirk as he realized how cruel the experiment was.

 

Nelson refrained from blowing the whistle just yet. “And just to make it fair, only one of you heroes are allowed to use your quirk in the first fifteen seconds, just to give one of the witches a chance to take off.”

 

“That’s more than enough!” growled Bakugou.

 

Lotte screamed at the top of her lungs.

 

“No whining! It gives away your position,” scolded Nelson. “And go!”

 

Nelson blew the whistle to signal Lotte, only for Bakugou to unleash an explosion that instantly knocked Lotte off her broom the second she got off the ground.

 

Lotte’s body flew in the direction of the witch students, alive, but smelling of smoke and covered in ash.

 

“Are you alright?” gasped a witch.

 

“That jerk!” yelled another.

 

Amanda tried snapping a finger in front of Lotte’s expressionless face. “C’mon stay with me!”

 

“Blink if you’re still alive.” instructed Sucy, actually concerned for her friend.

 

Lotte blinked and stared into the sky. “My life just flashed before my eyes.”

 

“I think that flash might have been from Bakugou’s explosion.” whimpered Hannah.

 

“Hey!” called out Bakugou. “You didn't start crying like Deku, so that’s great!”

 

“Kaachan!” frowned Deku, ironically on the verge of tears from that insult.

 

Diana looked at Lotte, placing a hand on her lips in disgust regarding the situation. “I feel this is less of a course on advanced broom flying and more of an excuse to watch us get beaten up by a quirk.” she said.

 

“There’s very little difference,” ignored Nelson.

 

The tests continued on for a while, with Sucy and Constanze having tied for lasting the longest against the heroes thanks to a mechanical broom and the use of potions. Even then those two hardly lasted for 30 seconds once all three heroes ganged up on them. The other witches went down without having to even face all three of the boys.

 

Nelson checked off her noteboard and noticed that the two top flyers, Amanda and Diana, had yet to take their turn. It seems fate was saving best for last.

 

“Diana, let’s go!” commanded Nelson.

 

Diana elegantly nodded and made her way to the starting point. Nothing seemed to break her icy exterior no matter how much Bakugou tried to intimidate her with a scowl. In fact, it seemed even he was the little uncertain one, knowing that Diana was generally the top of her class.

 

For once though, Deku and Todoroki both had a somewhat antagonistic serious expression, but not from malice as much as knowledge of who they were going to face.

 

It was again Bakugou turn to start off, which only escalated the tension on the field. He never held back against any of his opponents, but Diana would mean trying to break new ground. The entire situation resembled a stand off in an old American western movie. And yet, there was an underlying notion of acknowledgement. The two were both highly talented in their craft and knew it. Their arguments before meant that this showdown would be used as fodder for their next confrontation, whenever that would be.

 

It was like time was freezing as Nelson brought the whistle to her lips. Bakugou and Diana were both locked in each other eyes, each readying their quirk and spell respectively. It was aggression as well as an odd form of respect.

 

Nelson blew the whistle, and Bakugou instantly shot a blast to Diana, the fastest one he could conjure up. In response, Diana quickly rose a giant rock formation from the ground, which shielded her from the blast.

 

The resulting explosion crumbled the tiny hill. Its shape allowed the debris to head in the direction of the heroes, prompting Todoroki to create a giant ice wall to protect them.

 

Diana then soared to the sky, pretty high up to avoid Bakugou. He wouldn’t take it lying down however, as he quickly accelerated into the sky via explosions like a rocket. Diana then simply dashed away at a safe distance where Bakugou wouldn’t be able to attack her.

 

By the time Bakugou did pick up speed, Deku and Todoroki were already on the prowl.

 

Diana witnessed Todoroki carrying Deku on a giant path of ice that was moving faster than what she had expected. Diana simply tried to keep the distance between her and the heroes, knowing none of them were used to catching a witch that could move like her on a broom.

 

Still, it was clear that the three heroes were well practiced as well. It was straining as quirks were physical abilities, but all three of them were keeping pace. They were effectively jets in the sky.

 

Todoroki finally made his way to Diana and began flaming her with his free side, but Diana simply conjured a barrier to block the flames. Now, she couldn’t see who else was going to attack her, but the sound of Deku’s quirk charging up filled her ears. As she expected.

 

She sensed Deku leaping from the ice path and trying to shatter her barrier with a kick. Of course, that would mean Todoroki needed to put out his flames for a second. And it was that second that made all the difference as Diana let go of her barrier and immediately transferred her magical power to a repulsion beam.

 

It hit Deku square on the chest sending him flying back while Diana was given a shove in the opposite direction. Thus, Todoroki had to waste time trying to catch Deku on his ice trail, while all Diana had to worry about at the moment was Bakugou. He had propelled himself in a way that didn’t need additional explosions to send him flying straight to her like a canon.

 

Diana smirked. Bakugou needed one hand to blast her and another to stay afloat, which suited her technique perfectly even if she hardly had a second to react.

 

Diana quickly propelled herself to the side, and as expected, Bakugou used one hand to shove himself in that direction. He needed the other hand to shoot at Diana, but she quickly dashed back and avoided his attack without even needing to fire a spell.

 

“You’re not the only one who can reorient himself in the air like that you know!” chided Diana, while Bakugou scowled at having his technique used against him.

 

Meanwhile, Todoroki and Deku finally managed to catch up with Diana, the trail of ice having extended quite a bit for the two to reach her.

 

Diana quickly flew downward and Deku followed up by diving at her position, accelerated by his own quirk.  All the while, Todoroki and Bakugou were trying to snipe at her with ice and explosions.

 

Then, Diana did the unexpected.

 

She instead flew up towards Deku’s position as she was being shot at with quirks. As Deku charged up his own fist to knock Diana out of her broom, Diana sped high into the sky as fast as she could, causing Deku to get hit with both of Bakugou’s and Todoroki’s attacks.

 

Diana chuckled as she continued to fly upwards, glad to see her experiment working as Deku soared down and needed Todoroki to rescue him.

 

As Todoroki now faced the new task of trying to pick up Deku to regain their combined offensive against her, it was then that Diana did what other witches failed to do. She immediately cast a heat blast spell, one that quickly weakened the foundations of Todoroki’s giant ice path.

 

As Deku was rescued by him, Todoroki suddenly fell them both enter free fall once again as his ice support collapsed.

 

As they recovered, Bakugou caught up once more and Diana and shot out various explosions at her. Diana responded by conjuring multiple objects that upon exploding, would send debris flying in Bakugou’s way, disorienting his attack pattern.

 

Todoroki meanwhile tried to switch it up by utilizing his flames against Diana, who responded with a jetstream of water that doused the flames and created an aura of steam around them. Todoroki of course kept shooting those flames to ensure that Diana wouldn’t use the steam as cover for an escape.

 

Diana knew however that there was a trick, and she could see the sparks of Deku’s quirk in the midst of the vapor. She just needed to time it once again.

 

Todoroki’s flames stopped and the moment it did, Deku appeared with a kick aiming straight for Diana’s face. Normally, it would take a witch or wizard a second longer to react by casting another spell before Deku could hit them, but Diana’s reflexes weren’t to be underestimated and she didn’t need to change spells.

 

Instead, Diana aimed her wand up and knocked Deku back with with her water cannon like she was on riot control. She then used her repulsor spell to gain some momentum in the opposite direction before speeding on.

 

Diana tried to fire another heatblast at Todoroki’s ice path to once again to weaken its foundation, but he had predicted such a move and used his ice to shield any weak spots. She was moving too fast and far away to hit a critical section.

 

Bakugou meanwhile had begun flying towards her direction, but on the other side of Todoroki, leading to Diana’s fear, encirclement. She could conjure up a barrier, but the force of both Todoroki’s and Bakugou’s attacks would have likely shattered it.

 

The only option was to try and shoot Todoroki out of her way before Bakugou got too close, as the former had the best capacity for long ranged attacks.

 

Diana tried to get as high in the sky as she could to outpace both of her attackers, firing everything she had at Todoroki. Still, the issue of distance was biting her as Todoroki had the ability to react and dodge. Diana’s spells, no matter what they were, didn’t exactly move at light speeds, and all parties here had killer reflexes.

 

She gave it some thought, and decided to charge at Todoroki, who had seemingly abandoned Deku on a raised ice pillar which limited his mobility. He was getting a little pissed.

 

Bakugou would of course follow her, and he just needed to get a little closer to be in striking range for her plan to work.

 

Todoroki began attacking Diana with fire, but it didn’t matter what quirk he used for what she had in mind. Diana countered his attack with a water spell and set herself up in a point where Todoroki’s flames would unknowingly hit Bakugou behind her the moment she dodged upwards. All she needed to do was pay attention to the sound of Bakugou’s explosions to time her repulsion just right.

 

Todoroki’s flames were powerful, but so was Diana’s magic as the flame quirk and water magic failed to overcome each other. Meanwhile, Bakugou’s explosions were getting louder, until they suddenly stopped.

 

Diana darted her head in Bakugou’s direction, noticing that he was using the momentum of his quirk to propel himself towards her. Perhaps it was a sneak attack, and Bakugou was dangerously close, but Diana was ready to evade.

 

The second after she looked at Bakugou however, he lit up what was essentially a mini flashbang or stun grenade in his palms, causing Diana to recoil and close her eyes from the bright light.

 

She didn’t dare try to break her water spell against Todoroki even while stunned, and desperately tried to fly up to avoid Bakugou’s explosion. However, her temporary blindness stopped her from doing anything.

 

Diana felt Bakugou’s two hands grab both of her arms, which quickly threw her off her broom. The round was over.

 

Diana opened her eyes and witnessed her broom being engulfed in Todoroki’s flames before gravity could even take effect. She wasn’t paying for it.

 

Bakugou freed one of his hands and fired a series of explosion downwards to slow down their descent. His other arm was wrapped around Diana tightly. She had quite frankly never been this close to a guy before.

 

“Hey! Put me down Bakugou!” yelled Diana, a blush on her face.

 

Bakugou didn’t respond, trying his hardest to slow their fall.

 

“Hello? Katsuki? Bakugou?” frowned Diana, tapping him on the head with her own to get his attention. His grip wrapped around both of her arms, which alongside the confusion of the situation, prevented Diana from properly using magic.

 

“Does your stupid ass want to die!” finally replied Bakugou.

 

“I can handle myself!” exclaimed Diana.

 

“I know that dumbass! But you don’t have your shitty broom right now!” countered Bakugou.

 

Diana wiggled her wand and hoped to get an incantation out, finally managing a repulsor spell that aided Bakugou in keeping them from plummeting on the ground.

 

The two finally landed, conveniently in front of the other witches. At first the two were bewildered by everyone’s eyes widened expression instead of the typical ‘glad you’re okay’ mantra, until they noticed Bakugou still had his arm around Diana.

 

He quickly let go of her, the two still maintaining their neutral, but haughty, expressions.

 

Diana looked in the other direction. “Well, I appreciate your gesture.”

 

Bakugou looked the other way too. “That’s the thanks I get for saving you?”

 

“You technically knocked me off that broom,” pointed out Diana, a little bitter at her loss. “And why may I ask, did you choose to yank me off with your hands instead of an explosion?”

 

Bakugou groaned like he was talking to a child. “Blinding you up close instead of using an explosion so I could use my fists isn't something you thought I’d do. I use that tactic against a bunch of people, so don’t think you’re special.”

 

Diana smirked. “Huh, I thought you just wanted to get close to me.”

 

Bakugou gritted his teeth, but a part of him looked shy. “Shut your damn mouth before I light you up.” He didn’t technically deny it.

 

Todoroki and Deku finally reached down to where the others were waiting. Todoroki had created a giant pathway of ice in the sky while chasing Diana, almost like a roller coaster. Had Diana not knocked down his initial effort, it would have been surely bigger.

 

Nelson and the witches that weren’t Akko fired a spell that melted the ice path, clearing the skies for the next person on the list. That was the other best flier in the class.

 

“Alright, it’s time for the real star to take control.” bragged Amanda, causing Diana to glare at her.

 

Amanda walked on over to the starting point with the smuggest expression any witch could come up with.

 

“Hey prof, is it alright if all three of the guys attack me at the same time. I can handle it.” requested Amanda. “There’s a little experiment I need to try out.”

 

Nelson raised an eyebrow and thought about it for a minute. “Alright, but this better be worth it.”

 

The witches gasped amongst themselves. How could Amanda choose to have all three of the heroes attack her before she even took off? They all had their own special tactics with their quirks, and it was hard enough to shrug off just one of them before they gained an advantage in the sky.

 

Amanda made her way to the starting point and yelled at the heroes. “All three of you can attack me when Nelson blows the whistle! Good luck gentlemen!”

 

Bakugou laughed out loud. “You’re an idiot with a death wish!”

 

Todoroki half smiled to Bakugou. “Are you admitting that we’re stronger together?”

 

Bakugou almost blew him up before he noticed Nelson bringing the whistle to her lips. All three of the heroes charged up their quirks, creating an aura of energy around them. They considered Diana the best in class, but knew Amanda was a top broom flyer too. No chances were being taken given how tough Diana was.

 

Nelson blew the whistle and right as the heroes each shot an explosion, ice beam and shockwave, Amanda hopped right into the air gracefully with a big grin on her face.

 

Before the heroes could continue to engage her however, Amanada’s wand began to play music like a speaker.

 

The heroes and witches were instantly dumbstruck, but Amanda smirked. Plan A was still in effect.

 

Amanda then pointed her broom upwards and extended one leg alongside it in the same direction, showing to the heroes how toned she kept it. Then she did the lethal move of running her hand across her lap.

 

In an instant, Bakugou’s, Deku’s and Todoroki’s mouths all dropped. And so did the witches’ upon seeing their expression.

 

Amanda snickered and proceeded to go through one of her signature broom dances. She began to spin her body around her broom by just holding herself up with her legs before spinning herself in every direction with just her arms.

 

She then held onto her broom close, wrapping around it in a way that highlighted her curves and then dipped her body back. She started hanging upside down, supported only by her feet clinging onto the broom, as let her hair flow to the earth.

 

Deku’s breathing got heavier as he stared at Amanda’s legs, more of which was only not revealed as she kept a hand on her skirt, while another made a naughty shush sound at the boys. Bakugou meanwhile was a mixture of confusion and awe. Todoroki on the other hand was just straight up amazed. Shy even.

 

“Are they blushing?” gasped Lotte.

 

“D-deku always b-blushes!” retorted Diana. Flustered at the heroes being flustered.

 

Akko’s eyes twitched from envy. “Yeah, but Bakugou and Todoroki never blush like this!”

 

Diana tugged on Nelson’s arm. “You have to stop this now!”

 

“Using hormonal based attacks like this is normally discouraged for a witch or wizard, but hasn’t been documented against heroes, so we should let this play out.” countered Nelson, who honestly was getting a thrill seeing the heroes reduced to this state.

 

Amanda continued on her dance as the heroes just stood there dumbstruck. Her schtick at that moment was to do a series of wild swings that were broken up with elegant poses to keep the heroes on their toes. She then even managed to get back onto the ground and began spinning her broom around like a pole twirler in the olympics.

 

Speaking of olympics, she began to do various acrobatic moves with her broom. Flips, cartwheels and more spinning alike. It was a simultaneous display of grace and sheer athleticism.

 

She then got back on her broom and flew to the heroes, getting really up close in Todoroki’s face especially. He was never in such a position before and it showed. Amanda smirked and nudged forward, even placing a finger on his chin, gazing deep in his nervous eyes.

 

Amanda then lied her back down on her broom, still extending a knee up to ensure that the heroes would remain in their trance. She then waved to Nelson and called out to check if her experiment worked.

 

“Hey Professor! Did I beat Diana’s time yet!?” asked Amanda.

 

Nelson checked a stop watch and was surprised by the result. “Wow! You just did!”

 

Diana’s face turned an angry red, mad at Amanda’s attention hogging and unfair tactic. She wasn’t one that craved attention in this particular way, but she still loathed it when someone else bathed in it anyway.

 

Amanda got back up to a proper flying position and waved at the heroes. “Bye bye boys!”

 

Amanda soared into the sky, and in the instant she did, Bakugou’s expression turned to rage.

 

“GET BACK HERE YOU BASTARD!!!!” screamed Bakugou at the top of his lungs. He wasted no second launching himself to the sky, eager to strike down Diana and recover from his humiliation.

 

Deku and Todoroki glanced at each other, mutually embarrassed, and took off to the skies as well. The last thing they needed was Bakugou to be convicted for murder.

 

Nelson bit her lip as she watched the heroes attempt to strike down Amanda. Bakugou was so focused on getting up close and personal that he failed to shoot at Amanda when he had the opening. Not that it mattered given Todoroki’s and Deku’s failures to hit.

 

Whereas most of the witches relied on barriers, Amanda and Diana could at least rely on their skills and speed. Diana was slightly faster however and had a wider array of spells, but Amanda however was more agile and used her dance tactics to dodge every attack with only the occasional spell.

 

It was clear that Amanda herself also had no qualms about testing parameters in the more literal sense, as she began leading the heroes outside of campus grounds to rile them up further. Coupled with her evasions all being finished off with a dance pose, she was clearly enjoying this way too much.

 

Nelson groaned. “Great, now I have to get the other teachers to bring them back.”

 

Before she could make a move however, Lotte tapped her on the arm.

 

“Um, Ms. Nelson...did your old air force buddies mention they were running drills today?” asked Lotte.

 

Nelson looked at where Lotte was pointing at as her ears filled with the all too familiar sound of jet fighters, causing her to have another Cold War flashback. Normally this would not have happened, but the presence of the three heroes and sudden cross quirk and magical training course had driven most of the teachers to madness.

 

The planes themselves had entered the town’s air space as Amanda began flying around them, with the still attacking heroes unwittingly firing their quirks inches away from the jets.

 

“Delta 5 this is Delta 3 we are being fired at,” radioed the pilot Delta 3, noticing the barrage of spells and magic coming at them. “My computer is getting an ID on the hostiles now.”

 

The targeting program calculated all possible assailants to prepare the pilots, finally reading _ARGENTINIAN FIGHTER JET_.

 

“Argies again?” frowned Delta 3. “When will they ever learn? Firing anti aircraft missile.”

 

The jet launched a missile at the targets, but since Amanda and the heroes were clearly not aircraft, the missile inadvertently ended up striking Delta 5’s ship.

 

“Missed,” muttered Delta 3. “Firing second missile.”

 

Another missile was launched, aimlessly travelling in a straight line with no airship to lock on to. As it neared Amanda and her hero attackers, the witch shot a suspension spell at Bakugou in an effort to keep him frozen in the air, only for Bakugou to dodge the attack via explosion.

 

As a result, the spell inadvertently struck the missile which Delta 3’s plane didn’t have time to avoid, crashing right into it and exploding.

 

Luckily the two pilots had miraculously deployed their parachutes and ejected before each of their aircraft was struck down. Delta 5 was incredibly pissed at their situation as made it known.

 

“This is why the Falklands should be given back to Argentina!” pointed Delta 5.

 

“Those islands are British and will remain so!” argued Delta 3.

 

Their geopolitical argument was suddenly cut off when Amanda did a masterful turn around to catch the heroes off guard. She sped past the parachuting pilots who all parties failed to notice, which caused one of Todoroki’s missed flame blasts to burn the parachutes to a crisp.

 

Thankfully, the pilots only fell a short distance by that point, somehow not hurt from the fall, and took their anger out on each other with a fist fight.

 

Back up in the sky, the heroes were throwing absolutely everything they could against Amanda in an effort to bring her down. Bakugou tried to use his blinding technique against Amanda, but she knew better than to face him even if she had a harder time outpacing him than Diana.

 

Amanda still used her spells, but they were primarily directed against Deku and Todoroki. Even then it was to orient themselves in a position where they would blast each other instead of her. Each success never got old for her.

 

However, it was clear that the heroes were picking up on her moves and patterns. It also may have been a wrong idea to use her dance moves as the basis for her dodges like when she did her burglary, as her smug aura only seemed to make Bakugou more aggressive.

 

Deku leaped for a kick against Amanda, who normally would have responded with a well timed dive down. Instead Deku quickly realigned himself to bring his feet under the broomstick before Amanda could dodge, and kicked it to the side.

 

Like it was straight out of a horror movie, Amanda was turned to face Bakugou coming straight at her with one of his slasher smiles.

 

Bakugou of course hit her with stun attack, but Amanda was able to keep both hands on her broom even as she felt the full impact of Bakugou’s weight trying to rip her off of it. She responded by flailing her broom around in multiple directions, trying to shake him off like a loose piece of clothing.

 

Bakugou wasn’t going to give up and kept trying to pry Amanda from her broom even if he was being tossed around. Amanda had almost succeeded in getting him off, but he managed to snap one hand backup and keep himself latched.

 

Much to his pleasure, he was now facing Amanda directly. Perfect for landing a series of punches to break her. Of course, Amanda was much stronger than any of the other witches, and wasn’t going to be taken out so easily even if Bakugou’s hits hurt. He did have to extend his hand quite a bit though, so they weren’t as powerful as they could have been.

 

Amanda countered by kicking him in the the face, arm and chest. As if it wasn’t obvious enough from her dance that she never skipped leg day, Bakugou had to endure some attacks that stinged a little more than he’d have liked to admit.

 

Deciding to risk it, Bakugou tried to fire off a soft explosion at point blank range, but Amana used the brief delay to whip out her wand and conjure a barrier that directed the explosion back at him, forcing Bakugou down.

 

Still, Amanda was hurt and her reflexes were going to deteriorate. Much to her displeasure, Todoroki and Deku were catching up to her on the former’s ice path. She braced herself for what came next.

 

All of a sudden, Todoroki yelled “DO IT!” and the unexpected followed.

 

Deku grabbed Todoroki with his enhanced arms and tossed him in Amanda’s direction. He had been sent flying faster than anything they had seen today.

 

Amanda responded by attempting to evade Todoroki, but he used his flames to propel himself in her direction. Todoroki hadn’t exactly been used to using his fire to travel in the air, so movements mimicking Bakugou’s were unexpected even if they were risky.

 

Todoroki used his icy hand to grab ahold of Amanda’s broom, while he pointed his flaming one straight at her.

 

Amanda managed to shoot out a spell that whacked Todoroki’s fiery hand, causing him to miss flaming attack. Todoroki expected that however, and his icy hand was doing all the work for him. By the time that Amanda noticed, it was too late.

 

Amanda’s hands and broom were encased by Todoroki’s ice, and the sudden feeling of cold disrupted her magical concentration.

 

The two were sent flying down, but Todoroki reacted quickly by melting the ice with his fire.

 

“Grab onto me with both of your hands NOW!” commanded Todoroki.

 

Amanda didn’t hesitate for a second and threw her arms around Todoroki as he finally separated her from the frozen broom that went crashing down on its own.

 

Todoroki held Amanda close once his flaming hand was put out, and used his icy one to create an ice path for the two of them to safely slide back to the other witches. Todoroki had won. The least he could do was protect his former target.

 

The two were largely too concentrated on getting back down, but the awkwardness of holding onto each other much like Bakugou and Diana had previously wasn’t lost to them.

 

“Maybe I should’ve stuck to my little dance.” joked Amanda as they slid down.

 

“I wouldn’t complain.” noted Todoroki, who was still using his dead serious voice.

 

When they did reach the splendid earth, Amanda wasted no time hopping out from his grasp, but was also more positive about her rescue than Diana was.

 

“Hey! Nice job icy hot!” thanked Amanda, getting off from the ice path and walking back

 

“You..you did a g-great job yourself!” replied Todoroki, trying to catch his breath.

 

Bakugou and Deku finally made their way back as well. Both of them were beginning to look a little more weary. Had this been a land battle where they were allowed to be a bit more lethal, things would be looking different.

 

Amanda rolled her eyes at Bakugou, whose punches were likely the deciding factor in breaking up her streak.

 

Meanwhile, the exhausted Bakugou pointed towards the equally exhausted Diana and Amanda, the latter flipping him off for the force he used in their brawl.

 

“You two!” roared Bakugou, causing the witches to begin cowering while Nelson readied to break up a fight.

 

Bakugou smirked. “You two know how to screw me up. You got me real good in a whole lot of places by using all of your power like I wanted you to.”

 

Bakugou then glared and Todoroki and Deku. “At least SOME PEOPLE know how to not be a wimpy asshole and treat me with the respect I deserve during a fight!”

 

Deku groaned while Todoroki rolled his eyes. Bakugou had clearly not gotten over Todoroki refraining from using his fire quirk against him at the sports festival. At least it seemed he had gotten over Amanda’s little dance, or at least acknowledged it as a successful tactic.

 

Todoroki called out to the confused Amanda and Diana. “Congratulations! He likes something about you two which is one more thing than he likes about me and Deku.”

 

Unexpectedly, both witches chuckled. They realized this was perhaps the highest compliment Bakugou could give them. Diana eyed Bakugou who was still looking at her and gave him a small nod, him doing the same as they recognized each other at least as worthy opponents.

 

Nelson sighed in relief at not breaking up a fight.

 

Amanda finally regained her strength as Todoroki approached her.

 

“Need any help walking back?” offered Todoroki, unsure why he just blurted that out, unable to get the image of Amanda’s little broom dance out of his mind as well.

 

“I’m fine, but thanks anyway,” chuckled Amanda. “It doesn’t really hurt.”

 

“Right.” nodded Todoroki, who paused and made his way back to the hero starting point.

 

Nelson looked at the list of witches that flew and groaned at who the last name was. It only now dawned on her that Akko may have been deliberately trying to go last. It was either to fight off the heroes when they were too tired from facing Amanda and Diana, or simply to reduce the amount of time the other witches would mock her for her poor flying. Regardless, the end result was inevitable and some of the witches began packing up.

 

Akko gulped and nervously made her way to the starting point, facing the heroes who finally worked up their sweats after their debacle with Amanda and Diana. Still, they looked far from done.

 

Deku noticed Akko’s sullen expression and called out to her. “Hey! Good luck!”

 

Akko sheepishly smiled. The heroes had never seen her ride a broom before, and she was about to humiliate herself without the heroes having to even lift a finger. She knew at least Deku wouldn’t give her any shit for it. He was considerate.

 

“Let’s get this over with!” commanded Bakugou, who expected little from Akko.

 

Akko prepared herself for the worst as Nelson blew the whistle. Before Deku could even begin to fire his attack, Akko began spinning out of control on her broom as usual.

 

Once again the heroes were frozen in confusion, but one more of genuine shock than ecstacy like with Amanda.

 

“Her time is up!” suddenly yelled Todoroki as he raised his arm and unleashed his ice shot, Bakugou and Deku firing an explosion and shockwave at her as well.

 

Akko was just being yanked across in the same space, so she would have normally been an easy target in a normal situation.

 

But this time, it was anything but normal.

 

Akko opened her eyes as she felt the quirks come at her, but didn’t feel anything. She opened one eye to discover that she was floating above the ground like a normal witch or wizard on their broom.

 

Another barrage of quirks came at Akko, but she just felt an instinct take over her as she dodged the attack with Diana’s speed and Amanda’s technique.

 

The heroes were just as confused as Akko was at that point. But absolutely nothing could compare to how the other witches were reacting. Akko, the worst flyer in the class, or perhaps the history of magecraft, was dodging attacks only the top students could ever hope to.

 

Amanda blurted out her shock. “What the hell! You’re supposed to be an idiot at this!”

 

“Are you sure!” countered Bakugou, annoyed at how Akko was seemingly able to predict and dodge each and every one of his attacks.

 

Deku tried to sprint and tackle her, but Akko’s widened as she suddenly launched herself to the sky, dodging Deku’s attack by a hair.

 

Todoroki frowned while trying to snipe Akko with ice shards. “I don’t understand, she was inept just before we started attacking. And she’s not even sure what’s going on!”

 

“Well, it’s pissing me off!” groaned Bakugou, who launched himself into the sky, annoyed that he had another long chase ahead him after Diana and Amanda.

 

Todoroki picked up Deku with his ice and shot up to the skies with him, leaving behind a dumbfounded professor Nelson and her equally shocked students.

 

“Children, has Akko been hiding something from me?” asked Nelson. “If so, then her grades could have been much better this year.”

 

Diana began scratching her cheeks. “B-but h-how w-why……”

 

Nelson rolled her eyes. “I’ll take that as a no.”

 

Akko was screaming as she dodged each and every attack coming at her. She didn’t know what the hell was going on, but she could avoid every attack as if it was coming at her like a crawling snail. She was certain she wasn’t drugged or hexed before this.

 

The heroes couldn’t believe it until around a few minutes in, but Akko was their toughest challenge. Whereas Diana and Amanda had clearly been putting effort into their evasions and tactics, Akko was unpredictable, yet she moved in a way where she could predict everything the heroes were going to do. No fancy acrobatics or spells, just avoiding the quirks like she and them were two parallel lines.

 

A few more minutes passed of the heroes aimlessly chasing Akko around. They could finally feel the strain. Deku didn’t need another broken bone, half of Todoroki’s body was freezing and boiling while Bakugou’s arms began twitching to the point where he couldn’t even aim properly.

 

They hardly broke a sweat against most of the witches, but Amanda and Diana took a lot out of them. Akko had no end in sight however.

 

As if they could all read each other minds, Bakugou and Deku landed on a giant ice platform Todoroki created as they all caught their breaths, although Todoroki still tried to snipe the screaming and frantic Akko in vain.

 

Bakugou took a deep breath. “What...the hell…”

 

“Man, she’s really good huh.” sighed Deku.

 

“I don’t think she’s ever been this good before if the other witches are just as surprised as us.” noted Todoroki, who was barely putting any effort anymore.

 

“I hate to say it, but I think we got to our limit.” hissed Bakugou, pissed at having ever uttered such a thing.

 

Todoroki finally gave up trying to pierce Akko with ice, every part of his body was killing him. “Yeah, I think we ought call it a day.”

 

Suddenly, Akko’s broom began to stop responding to her whims and no longer flied in a stable direction. It made a sound similar to a car’s engine failing and it jerked up and down like a plane trying to stay up.

 

The pupils in Akko’s eyes shrunk as she plummeted to the sky, her terrified scream quickly grabbing everyone’s attention.

 

“AKKO!” cried Deku at the top of his lungs upon realizing she lost control of her broom.

 

Although tired, Deku managed to supercharge his legs for a giant leap as he practically flew to rescue Akko from her demise. The shock from his jump was so great that it shattered Todoroki’s ice platform which forced him and Bakugou to use the last of their strength to safely land.

 

With tears of fear forming in his eyes, Deku finally managed to safely grab Akko mid fall as the latter managed to still hold onto her broom.

 

“I got you!” yelled Deku, who looked down for a safe way to land.

 

Akko’s eyes finally opened as she gazed at her rescuer. Deku was clearly just as scared as she was, but not out of fear of his own death, but also out of fear that he would lose her. Yet, there was also a face of bravery behind the tears that Akko herself always had when she faced danger. A hope was still in both of them.

 

They neared the ground, but Akko was assured that Deku would protect them. She just felt that she could trust him in his arm. And worst case, there were still the other witches and Nelson to be realistic and frank.

 

With a loud thud on impact, Deku landed Luna Nova’s courtyard safely by transferring his quirks power to his feet and legs, effectively hardening them from damage. The landing caused a small hole to appear around them.

 

Deku had shut his own eyes, but managed to leap out of the crater, a crater that was rather muddy given how much of Todoroki’s melted ice must have covered the field by now.

 

The witches were relieved upon seeing him jump out of that whole with Akko alive. Nelson herself put down her broom and wand she intended to use with ease. Only Sucy looked a little ticked since she used the last of her bouncy trampoline potion on herself before using it to break Deku’s fall and cause some hilarity.

 

“Did we make it?” gulped Deku.

 

“Yay! My hero!” smiled Akko, hugging Deku’s head, which caused his shut eyes to quickly open.

 

Then Deku noticed exactly where he was holding Akko. One hand was just on her back, but the other was between her legs and thighs that he found rather attractive.

 

His face turned the brightest shade of red, causing most of the witches to start giggling at him. It was rather too obvious how he felt at this point.

 

Akko hopped out of his arms, giving off the innocent impression that she didn’t know how Deku was reacting, but her smile turned into a smirk. She was aware at least.

 

Todoroki and Bakugou finally landed back to where everyone was, exhausted as hell. Any further uses of their quirks for the day had to be put on hold at least for two hours.

 

“Wow, you guys got beat.” snickered Sucy.

 

Bakugou caught his breath. “Yeah dumbass, our quirks are physical abilities, not stupid lasers you shoot out of a wand.”

 

Todoroki stretched and then extended his arm to Akko for a shake. “Congratulations, you officially beat us three. There was nothing we could do against you.”

 

Bakugou didn’t extend his arm, but his voice was somewhat somber. “Yeah, what the hell was that? I thought you were gonna suck, but you somehow outdid Diana and Amanda. I don’t like surprises like that.”

 

Bakugou glared at Deku, until Diana’s voice caught his attention.

 

“Honestly, I hate that kind of thing myself.” admitted Diana, which caused Bakugou to half grin at her, glad to see that someone understood.

 

Diana’s voice turned angry. “Honestly though! How did you manage to fly like that Akko? You’re literally the worst one in our class if I am being perfectly honest and blunt with you.”

 

Akko pouted, angry that her moment was ruined. “I don’t know! I was flailing around as usual until those three started shooting at me and well….I kinda just had this feeling inside of me that let me fly properly.”

 

Deku gasped loudly, having seen the pattern. “WAIT! You said you started having control when we shot at you with our quirks right?”

 

Akko nodded.

 

Deku place a finger on his chin. “And guys, didn’t Akko start falling when we STOPPED trying to take her down?”

 

Bakugou and Todoroki looked at each other and nodded.

 

Deku smiled. “Akko! I think you can fly when you’re being threatened! It’s like a wierd fight or flight response, and your’s is literally flight!”

 

Nelson scoffed. “Hardly! She faced a good series worth of magical threats and could barely move around then. She always needed someone, mostly Lotte and Sucy, to bail her out.”

 

Todoroki bit his lip and threw in his own take. “Well, those were magical threats. This is the first time Akko has had to face someone with quirks while riding a broom, so I wanna try something.”

 

“What?” asked Akko.

 

“Try to fly again,” commanded Todoroki. “I see where this is going.”

 

Nelson nodded and nudged Akko to take flight again.

 

Akko said Tia Freyre and began levitating off the ground with her broom. Of course, she began flailing again, being jerked in every random direction and nearly falling off.

 

Todoroki looked to the witches. “One of you, try to hit her with some spell!”

 

Amanda gave a naughty smirk and quickly pulled out her wand before anyone else could. She fired a small lightning bolt square that zapped Akko lightly, causing everyone to giggle from the funny face the latter made when getting shocked.

 

Akko fell down from her broom, but quickly got back to fly after Todoroki gestured her to continue.

 

This time, Todoroki lit up his fire quirk against Akko, who gained control of her broom in that very moment and successfully evaded his attack no matter where he pointed it. Akko was still screaming of course as the phenomenon was rather subtle.

 

Todoroki then turned off his quirk, and as expected, Akko lost control and fell down.

 

“And there’s our answer!” exclaimed Deku.

 

The witches were all dumbfounded. Somehow, by some weird force of nature, the worst flyer in the class found a rather odd loophole. No one wanted to believe it, but they all saw it up close.

 

Diana’s eyes began twitching, conjuring a notepad and pen to write down the most absurd discovery she had ever witnessed. The image of Akko flying a broom perfectly and dodging the quirk attacks with perhaps no effort would forever haunt Diana.

 

“New theory,” screeched Diana. “Akko can apparently fly perfectly when she’s being attacked by quirks and apparently nothing else...This discovery has no scientific value whatsoever.”

 

“Stop gritting your teeth.” muttered Amanda, annoyed by Diana’s own annoyance.

 

“Yay!” Akko meanwhile hugged all three of the heroes with glee, which enraged Bakugou, embarrassed Deku and confused Todoroki. Once again, quite of a few of the witches appeared to be a slightly jealous. Diana herself was now longing for a moment like this if only to show up Akko and Amanda who both had their moment with all three of the guys today.

 

Tears of joy streamed down Akko’s face. She had been waiting for this moment forever. “I finally found out how I can fly a broom! All you three have to do is try and kill me with your quirks!”

 

“Giant done.” agreed Bakugou.

 


	10. The Town

“So what do you think?” asked Akko cheerfully. 

“Huh?” flinched Deku, taken aback by Akko pointing her face close to him.

“The green milk tea, duh.” chuckled Akko.

“Oh? Oh! It’s really good.” answered Deku. 

Deku sipped his green milk tea and smiled at Akko, scoring a giggle from her. After Broom Flying class, the heroes needed to head to Blytonbury town to pick up a few things for their stay. Amanda, Diana and Akko of course had to supervise them, and once the shipping trip concluded Akko invited them over to a cafe to relax.

Akko tried to work up a conversation with Bakugou and Todoroki as well. “So, I know it’s not like Japan, but this bakery is run by a Hong Konger couple and it kinda tastes like home.”

Todoroki chowed on his custard bread and nodded. “It’s good. I appreciate the gesture.”

Bakugou drank his taro latte and tried to think of something nice to say. “Well it doesn’t suck.”

“Still, are you sure you want to pay for the entire bill?” questioned Diana to Todoroki.

“I’m positive. I’m paying and it’s final.” insisted Todoroki. 

Amanda bumped Diana’s shoulder with her own. “Gee, when someone’s paying the bill you ought to take advantage of it.”

“And while you shouldn’t settle for the cheaper items on the menu, you shouldn’t exactly order the more expensive treats either.” replied Diana.

Todoroki got out his wallet. “Seriously, it’s not even really my money. My dad pays for everything I do so he can keep a leash on me. He might be the top hero in Japan right now, but he’s also an abusive darwinistic misogynist, so who cares.” 

The witches were taken aback.

Akko’s eyes widened. “So the scar…”

“Not from him, but because of him still.” noted Todoroki.

“And misogynist?” scoffed Diana.

“Yeah,” sighed Todoroki. “He saw my mom as breeding stock, he compares me to my brothers and never my sister, he thinks girly things are weakness and let’s just say he’s not happy that I’m attending Luna Nova instead of doing SAS training like he wanted.”

“Glad he’s not a ‘hero’ here.” shook Amanda. “Beats his kid and hates women? Wow.”

Diana crossed her arms. “Well, then I don’t feel bad if he loses a bit on me. Still, how wonderful it must be for Japan’s top hero to be utter filth.”

Bakugou rolled his eyes, not speaking only because he couldn’t decide if he wanted to trash Endeavor or defend hero society again. 

Akko gulped. “Um, if there’s anything we can do to...um..I..”

Todoroki waved his hands. “I’ll be fine..”

Amanda practically crushed her coffee cup. “Seriously! If you need to talk to someone, I’m here. I’ve got some issues with authorities too.”

Todoroki practically froze upon her statement, giving a really quick and quiet thank you. Amanda gently smiled at him nonetheless. Like Todoroki, she could be aloof in her own way, but there was something warm underneath that gave him comfort.

“Some would be an understatement Amanda.” noted Diana. 

Deku tried to move onto cheerier subject and began to take off his jacket. “So like...uh..did know you that Russia is...”

Dekku’s efforts were futile, as the witches gasped loudly.

Deku freaked out. “What did I do?”

“Your arms!” cried Akko. 

Deku looked at the scars from his arm that came from the use of his One for All quirk. It dawned on him that the witches hadn’t seen him outside a long sleeved outfit. 

“Oh!” yelled Deku. “It’s just from hero stuff.”

Akko finally separated her hand from her mouth. “It’s that bad?”

Bakugou interjected. “Half of those scars were from him not knowing how to use his own quirk.”

“Kaachan!” exclaimed Deku.

“Still!” cried Akko. “You poor thing!”

Deku sheepishly smiled. “I’m still kicking right?”

“You guys have a lot of scars,” noted Amanda. “Both in and out.”

Bakugou scowled. “I swear to God, none of you fucks better take any pity on me.”

“Too late.” teased Diana.

“Yeah!” agreed Akko before Bakugou could reply. “I’ve faced dragons, rock giants, and a whole buncha things, but I haven’t really...got too worked up on it”

“Probably because you’re incapable of realizing the ramifications of anything to get traumatized,” pondered Diana. “I mean, you’re the cause to most of the problems you solve.”

“She’s got a point there.” shrugged Amanda.

Diana looked back at the heroes. “I can kinda see why you all are...the way you are.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” hissed Bakugou.

“You know what she means.” remarked Todoroki.

Diana groaned. “I might be able to accept that some of your personality quirks come from something beyond your control, so maybe we should open up after all?”

Deku gulped. A lot of his trauma stems from inheriting a quirk that he couldn’t tell anyone else about, not knowing the witches had cracked the code earlier.

Todoroki was in agreement. “I’ll try my best.”

“No promises.” shrugged Bakugou. 

“Really though,” said Amanda. “Guys shouldn’t keep stuff like this bottled.”

Diana bit her lip. “You know, I read that boys these days might be more open to share their feelings with girls than with each other. Is that true?”

The heroes blushed. 

Deku sheepishly laughed. “I...I don’t think so?”

Akko nudged towards Deku. “But you can trust me right?”

Deku’s face got redder. “Of course.”

Bakugou scowled. “Gonna have to agree with the runt here.”

Diana mockingly laughed. “You’re not the type to open to anyone it seems.”

Todoroki thought about it for a moment. “Gender doesn’t make a difference to me.”

“Right,” winked Amanda. “And thanks for not being such a weirdo about being in an all girl school.”

Bakugou smirked. “Hey, I’m an equal opportunity offender.”

Deku nervously laughed. Unlike the other two, him being in an all girl school was really taxing on his shy demeanor. “Well, I think...it’s new for me huh?”

Amanda’s grin widened. “You’re so hopeless, it’s adorable.”

As expected, Deku’s pupils shrunk and he froze. Akko huffed at Amanda’s little retort, almost wanting a monopoly on Deku’s attention.

“Oh yeah, who are the guys you wanted us to meet?” remembered Todoroki.

Akko smiled. “Oh, that’s Andrew and Frank! They attend Appleton, the all boys academy we mentioned. Frank really wants to see you three since he loves heroes! And you’ll make some guy friends!”

“Oh, that cool!” chirped Deku. 

“And Andrew?” asked Bakugou.

Amanda smirked. “He think quirks and magic are kinda overrated. Akko had to go through a lot just so he wouldn’t be a total snob about it.”

“I foresee more fights.” groaned Todoroki..

“So let’s talk about something else.” quickly piped up Diana.

Bakugou got everyone’s attention. “I’m gonna say a few things about last class. Turns out the profs did a good job putting you all in charge of us since you’re not total wimps.”

Diana raised an eyebrow. Bakugou complimenting anyone wasn’t something she was used to.

Bakugou smirked. “Diana, you’re pretty fast on that broom. The spells you shot at us kept me on guard the whole time. I’ll admit, witches and wizards have variety in their attacks, and you rotating your spells is something I liked. BUT, the second I got up close to you on that broom, you got ripped off easily.”

“Maybe because somebody wanted an excuse to feel me.” chided Diana.

“Piss off,” groaned Bakugou, turning red. “Anyway, we heroes can beat up anyone in hand to hand combat unless they’re midget runts like Mineta. Magical dorks have the advantage on a broom, so just bulk up and I’ll probably never attack you like that again. Otherwise, great job.”

Diana bit her lip and nodded. “Duly noted. Thanks.”

Bakugou gave himself a proud look and moved onto Amanda. “You were strong enough to resist my attack. You’re also pretty agile, but I think you need still build up your spell use. You coulda probably knocked back Todoroki the moment he latched onto your fucking broom with something more powerful. Oh, and don’t try to piss off the people attacking you. You’re not gonna be facing total dumbasses most of the time that lose their shit.”

Amanda gave it a thought. “But it was pretty funny to see you three get all flustered.”

“That dance was pretty good though,” added Todoroki. “Ever considered a career in that?”

“Sometimes.” admitted Amanda.

“It was really nice.” agreed Deku, causing Akko to go into the defensive and scootch her chair closer to him in order to divert his attention.

Akko called out to Bakugou. “And what about me!”

Bakugou laughed hard. “You! You were clearly some sort of damn fluke. Something happened that caused you to dodge all of our quirk attacks on that broom, even though it’s pretty fucking clear you’d otherwise be dead in seconds if you were shot at by guns or hit by some spell. Like what advice could I give to some runt...”

Todoroki slammed his hand on the table. “NO! NO! NO! Don’t go there!”

Deku raised his voice in a way that unusual. “Yeah! You’re not gonna help anyone like that!”

Bakugou was taken by surprise. They were never this upfront to him, with Deku being aversive to such fights while Todoroki just took a blunt shots at him. When he looked into both of their eyes however, he didn’t see just anger, but pleading too.

Bakugou really didn’t want his suspicion to be true, but a part of him felt compelled for some reason to comply. 

Bakugou sighed. “All right. Akko, I don’t know why you were flying so perfectly back then, but it doesn’t matter. Pack a broom if you face a villain. They won’t touch you with their quirks.”

Akko’s frown turned upside down, feeling victorious. “Yay! Finally, something I’m great at!”

Diana still hadn’t gotten over the incident, but before she could respond, Todoroki suddenly sprang to action and grabbed an object that was hurled at Amanda, a tomato of all things

Like it was instinct, Bakugou and Deku got up to defend the witches and face what was suddenly attacking them, only to frown at their less than overwhelming assailants. The witches were annoyed, but otherwise sat in place.

“What the fuck is your problem!” roared Bakugou at a group of young boys.

“Just a little game we play with witches.” replied the leader.

Akko rolled her eyes. “Thomas! Not when we’re eating.”

Todoroki frowned. “You know them?”

“They’re infamous for their tomato attacks.” sighed Diana.

“Great catch though!” complimented Amanda to Todoroki, startling him.

Thomas glanced at Diana and waved at her. “Oh hey Diana, you know I didn’t mean to hit you!”

“I’m flattered.” joked Diana, knowing all too well that he was smitten by her since she saved him from a Giant during the Parade of the Witch parade a while back. He at least was smart enough to not take it further beyond teasing.

Thomas laughed. “So who are these three wizards, your boyfriends?” 

Bakugou’s pupils practically vanished. “We’re heroes! Not wizards! And we’re not their boyfriends!”

Bakugou froze and turned around. His last sentence was a little more awkward than it should have been.

“Eh, heroes are just witches that dress funny.” justified Thomas.

The guys, both heroes and the gang, were quickly cut off by a loud cry before any sparks could fly.

“NO!” The voice belonged to the cafe’s owner, Mr. Liu Tze Long, who was nibbling on a toothpick to give him a gruffer appearance.

Taking the toothpick out of his mouth, Long used it to point the kids to the other direction. “You’re lucky you didn’t break anything! Now get out of the premises!”

“We’ll you’re no fun!” chuckled Thomas, as he started to leave with his cronies. “Take good care of Diana dudes!” 

Bakugou, was especially taken by that last remark, gritted his teeth and sat back down along with Deku and Todoroki. All three of them were pretty embarrassed. It was just a pack of dumb kids, and they acted like they were facing down villains just because they were harassing the witches.

Long chewed on his toothpick, annoyed sounds coming out of him. “Sorry about that.”

“We’re fine.” assured Deku.

Todoroki then lifted a rather hefty pound sterling. “And here’s our bill with the change being a very nice tip for you.”

Long’s mouth widened upon seeing the bill, causing his toothpick to fall into Bakugou’s thankfully empty cup. “You kids go on ahead!” he said upon snatching the bill and heading inside. 

Bakugou was still mad, and also at himself for getting so worked up over the witches being pelted with tomatoes like it was life or death. “Damn kids.”

“Just ignore them. They’ve gotten worse at Tomato throwing.” remarked Amanda. “Even with Thomas’ quirk making a tomato splat with more force than it should.”

Bakugou laughed out hard. “That’s it? That’s his quirk.”

“All of their quirks are tomato themed allegedly.” pointed Diana.

Deku frowned. “Hey, haven’t you noticed that unlike Japan, you don’t see people with tricked out quirks, animal parts, or bio mechanical parts?”

Todoroki nodded. “Yeah, everyone looks like they’d be quirkless.”

“Not entirely true,” pointed Diana. “Our mayor’s quirk makes him a short no neck chump.”

“Very notable.” sarcastically replied Bakugou. 

Akko was now on the same page. “You’re right! People here aren’t flashy as they are in Japan.”

“Really weird.” admitted Todoroki.

“Or if you drop the quirk and Japan centrism for a moment,” suggested Diana. “Maybe people not having ridiculous powers everywhere is the norm and you guys are the exception.”

“And you hit the nail on the head!” said a voice that belonged to none other than one of the guys Akko wanted the heroes to meet.

Akko got up from her table and smiled wide. “Andrew! Frank! So glad you could make it!”

Frank was excited. “Are you kidding? There’s no way I’d give up on the chance to meet Bakugou, Deku and Todoroki!”

The three heroes were surprised, but strangely welcoming.

Frank rushed on over to them. “Oh my God! I’ve seen all those clips of you in action. You’re quirks are just awesome and I can totally see you three being the vanguard of the next generation of heroes! I’m just gonna stop talking right now, but can I have a photo and autograph.”

Deku took a moment to process it. “Yeah, of course!”

“I don’t mind.” complied Todoroki.

“Sure.” shrugged Bakugou, who was at least thankful someone noticed his talents.

Frank handed his phone to Andrew. “Could you do the honors man?”

“No problem.” nodded Andrew. He took the photo of Frank totally gushing over Deku, Todoroki and Bakugou. The latter two gave a smile, but it was clear that they weren’t used to big displays of happiness. 

Frank snatched the phone when Andrew was done. “Oh man, this made my day!” 

“Glad to have made it!” laughed Deku.

Akko got up to greet Andrew, causing Deku a bit of small shock.

Deku studied Andrew for a second. Both him and Frank were pretty tall, perhaps even surpassing Todoroki, and were rather well groomed and kempt men. The two clearly had some sort of history with the witches, and while Frank was busy pestering Todoroki and Bakugou with his fanboying, Andrew was more interested in Akko. 

Akko and Andrew looked at each other with warm smiles on their faces, causing Deku’s pupils to shrink. He didn’t blame Akko since even he would date a man as handsome as Andrew, but he felt like something was ripped from him.

Andrew eyed the three heroes. “So, you guys and the witches treating each other well?”

“W-we’re t-trying.” stammered Deku.

“We’ve had our hostilities.” bluntly countered Bakugou.

Amanda bit her lip. “Most of the witches still cower before them.”

“While some are doing their best to protect their practices from slander.” said Diana, locking eyes with Bakugou. The latter smirked jokingly, which almost made Diana laugh, much to her displeasure. 

“You top hero students are like America, China and Russia storming into a smaller country’s business uninvited,” explained Andrew. “You’re gonna be feared yeah, and hated too.”

“Well, I love you guys! Huge fan.” smiled Frank.

Akko pointed Andrew to the heroes. “So, what do you think? Isn’t it cool that they ended up here?”

Andrew looked at the three inquisitively, taking note of Deku’s almost fragile demeanor, Todoroki’s aloofness and Bakugou’s poor attempts at containing his annoyance.

Yet, Andrew knew what they were capable of and simply nodded. “I suppose it’s cool too.”

Amanda rolled her eyes. “Someone isn’t as big of a fan as Frank is.”

Andrew shrugged. “Well, it’s not as if heroes and quirks are a day to day part of my life.”

Bakugou spoke up, getting Frank to shut up. “The hell do you mean? 80% of people have a quirk.”

Diana interjected. “Did it not dawn on you that having a quirk isn’t a guarantee means you’ll have something flashy a second ago?”

“That doesn’t mean you won’t run at least run into one jackass with a powerful quirk per day.” replied Bakugou.

Andrew raised an eyebrow. “You’d be actually surprised. Unlike your side of the world, most of the planet hasn’t exactly embraced the hero and quirk dynamic. We’re the only country where witches and wizards are still relevant and I use that term loosely.”

“Hey!” scowled Akko. “I thought you were changing your mind on that.”

“I admitted magic was interesting, but it’s still an objective fact that it’s not been on the news lately.” explained Andrew. 

Diana grinned. “Although unfortunately for us, Akko has declared herself the vanguard of magic’s mainstream comeback.”

“No such thing as bad publicity.” joked Amanda.

Andrew stood up for Akko. “Well, at least she has her eyes set on the future.”

“Thanks!” cheered Akko, almost causing Deku a little pain in his chest. 

Todoroki was curious. “You don’t find quirks interesting? At all?”

Frank laughed. “He just doesn’t appreciate it like I do.”

Andrew explained. “Look, in Britain, we’re still a largely materialist people. Even with us being the last refuge for witches or wizards and all, extra normal abilities aren’t a day to day interest. I thought stuff like magic was outdated, but let’s just say a few run ins with Akko at least made the subject look fun.”

“I wanted those run ins.” quickly said Deku, covering his mouth.

“Trust me you don’t.” assured Diana, oblivious to Deku’s intention. Amanda on the other hand continued to dish out her dry grin.

Deku made an effort to save face. “I mean...you witches look like you have a lot of fun at your academy and go on these crazy adventures.”

Bakugou face palmed. “You jackass, what do you think we’ve been doing at UA?”

Todoroki continued. “And that’s the issue. Surely at least this month there’s been something going on in Britain quirk related that draws people attention to heroes and villains.”

The witches, Andrew and Frank shook their heads no. 

Frank also frowned. “Well, for me when it does happen...rarely...that’s enough to nab my attention. And I thought you were studying some of that stuff on hero society?”

Frank sighed. “I find magic a lot more interesting in its history and versatility. Quirks in Britain tend to be one note, and don't exactly have a developed culture surrounding them outside how heroes and villains interact with society. There are heroes here, but they’ll only face a villain in just a major city once a month. It’s nowhere near as grandiose like in Japan.”

“And grandiose it is!” beamed Frank. “I swear, every superhero fan thinks Japan is this grail of amazing quirks.”

Akko agreed. “Top heroes are mostly Japanese anyway.”

Amanda agreed. “Yeah, I remember looking at the list of the top heroes in the world. Took me forever to find the first Irish one. Just Japanese after Japanese.”

Frank smiled at Amanda. “But hey, Clover Man is pretty cool hero! He’s so lucky!”

“Most nations just have a few heroes, and even the big three have way less top heroes than they should,” noted Andrew. “Quirks can be amazing, but most people with a powerful quirk outside Japan just ends up with a special forces military career.”

Diana smirked. “And unfortunately, your recklessness prevented you from exploring the only part of Britain where quirks were remotely relevant.”

“Last time I’ll ever save a bunch of witches.” hissed Bakugou.

“I see, the Americans may have been the first to set up a hero license system, but they weren’t really the first people to embrace the study of quirks. That was Japan.” remembered Deku.

Todoroki continued on. “Makes sense. The constitution still limits our military, so heroes were a loophole.”

“Maybe not the best one.” hinted Andrew.

Diana nodded in agreement. 

Deku bit his lip. “But it also provided Japan a good excuse to open its immigration policy by giving incentives to those with unique quirks to leave their old countries behind.”

Andrew smiled. “And that’s something I think was a great development thanks to quirks.”

Bakugou fluffed his blond hair and smirked. “Yeah, a lot of my old folks came from Poland and Germany before meeting my other folks in Japan. Warsaw and Dresden didn’t offer anyone quirks a good future, so they headed straight to Kobe.”

Todoroki nodded. “Yeah, my mom and dad are both half Icelandic, which makes me that too.”

Amanda laughed. “Of course! Of course you’re half Icelandic.”

“I’m aware of the irony.” blushed Todoroki.

Amanda placed a hand on his shoulder, deepening his blush. “That’s pretty interesting though. I’m just a boring Irish American.”

Todoroki couldn’t respond with anything. His heart was beating faster than it ever had.

Andrew crossed his arms. “So yeah. Anyone who was anyone with a quirk moved to Japan, so I hope my more apathetic attitude is understandable.”

Deku shrugged. “No worries. America has its cool culture, planes and battleships, while China has the money, and Russia has advanced space and mecha tech, which is weird because I thought Japan would have be first in giant robots.”

Frank gave the unreceptive Bakugou a friendly bump on the shoulder. “But you guys chose quirks and are awesome at it.”

Diana spoke in her haughtiest voice. “Whereas Britain was at least willing to keep magic relevant in some parts of society. Thus, all wizards and witches flock over here to learn the art.”

Bakugou wasn’t backing down. “By the way, what’s your quirk? It can’t be that boring?”

Andrew looked like Bakugou just told him a joke. He got out his phone and began rubbing it for a few seconds as the others looked on with curiosity.

Andrew pointed the heroes to his phone. “All I can do is give my phone one signal boost even if there’s practically no way for it to get service.”

Deku looked confused. “But that’s really useful!”

Andrew chuckled. “I forget that I have it one hundred percent of the time. All I can send is a few texts and a 30 second call before it wears off anyway.”

Bakugou nodded. “Useless and boring but there’s room for potential. What about you Franky boy?”

Frank smiled wide. “I can sing karaoke with perfect sync. 0 delay.”

Bakugou winced. “That’s it?”

Deku shook his hands wildly before Frank could get offended. “Hey hey hey! We love karaoke in Japan. I’d love to party with you!”

Frank was awestruck. “You mean it dude?”

“Of course he does!” exclaimed Akko. “He’s no downer unlike someone.”

Bakugou got up furiously, prompting the witches and heroes to follow. Deku and Todoroki ended up carrying the stuff he bought in town in addition to their own.

“What’s with you now?” hissed Diana.

“There’s got to be ONE PERSON here with a borderline useful quirk!” roared Bakugou.

“Good luck finding it.” laughed Amanda.

Deku nervously chuckled while Todoroki prepared to restrain Bakugou. “Yeah Kaachan, maybe you’ll find someone that can attract small objects to themselves.”

Andrew raised an eyebrow. “Here, that’s the type of quirk that would make you eligible for special ops.”

Bakugou spotted Long cleaning a bill and pointed to him. “YOU! Cafe owner, what’s your quirk?” 

Long was taken aback and annoyed by Bakugou’s remark, but put up a smug face and emphasized the toothpick in his mouth. “My tongue makes toothpicks taste like delicious mint. Why do you think I chew on these all the time.”

“USELESS!” roared Bakugou.

“Calm down Kaachan!” begged Deku.

Bakugou ignored him and stopped a young couple walking by. “WHAT ARE YOUR QUIRKS!”

“My body acts like it gets an extra minute of sleep even if I sleep for just a second.” said the man, too afraid to ignore Bakugou.

“And my spit is acidic...on a rock found only the moon of Titan.” whimpered the woman.

“God damn it!” hissed Bakugou.

Todoroki placed a hand on Bakugou’s elbows. “I swear, I’m going to..”

Bakugou cut him off by pointing to an old man. “You! Quirk! What is it?”

The old man stroked his beard. “Stroking my facial hair gives me photographic memory of the last second.”

Diana tried to calm Bakugou down. “See? Most people around here…”

Bakugou once again refused to listen as he practically yelled into the air. “Does anyone in this country have a useful quirk!”

“There was one woman from here who could swap up people’s morality. Total maniac.” called out a muffled voice.

Bakugou sighed in relief and turned around. “See? There’s one person who’s…..”

Bakugou’s eyes widened upon realizing the source of the voice came from two tall heavily armored men in gas masks taking notes.

Deku’s gasped loudly. “Oh my God! You’re members of the SAS! Britain's elite soldiers!”

“Indeed.” nodded an operative.

The other took a quick look at the heroes. “Hey, aren’t the three of you the junior heroes who were supposed to be training with us at Hereford?” 

“We were supposed to.” confirmed Todoroki.

Bakugou pointed to Akko. “But then she happened.”

“Hey!” yelled Akko at Bakugou, who promptly ignored her.

One of the SAS soldiers laughed. “Yeah, when we heard the news about you and the demons, we had a good laugh.”

“But training alongside the magic folk is a noble endeavor.” admitted the other.

The two of them then faced Andrew and gave him a nod. “Andrew, how are you doing mate?”

“Wallcroft, Griffin,” greeted Andrew with a smile. 

“You know them?” asked Diana. 

“Just their code names I guess.” answered Andrew.

Frank placed an arm around Andrew. “His dad and the SAS go way back.”

“They even owe my family one.” added Andrew.

“Not surprised.” admitted Amanda.

“Anyway children,” called out Wallcroft as Griffin readied to show some paper. “We’re looking for that maniac, Rotha Mosley. She seems to have resurfaced yesterday.”

Griffin showed the contents of the paper. “Have you seen this woman.”

“Ahhh!” freaked out Akko. “It’s the maniac! Take her away! Take her away!”

She grabbed onto Deku, which almost made him faint had Todoroki not instinctively held him up with his arm.

“Calm down lass, it’s a sketch of Rotha, not the real thing.” assured Wallcroft.

“Now we’re gonna show you kids Rotha’s sketch again, and you’ll tell us if you’ve seen anyone looking like her. Understand?” asked Griffin.

All eyes were on Akko who suddenly calmed down.

“Yeah, uh huh.” happily chirped Akko.

“Okay,” sighed Griffin, who showed the sketch again.

“Ahhh! Horrible!” screamed Akko, hugging Deku and Andrew this time for dear life.

Akko returned to normal once Griffin retracted the paper. The two SAS officers glanced at each other, clearly smirking under their gas masks and began showing and retracting the paper to elicit a scream from Akko each time she saw the sketch.

“Does she have any working brain cells?” asked Wallcroft.

“Unlikely.” shook Diana. 

Frank bit his lip. “I thought you guys would have something better than a sketch.”

“Unfortunately, she’s ex SAS and knows how to hide herself well, with ALL images of her gone sans this sketch.” replied Griffin. “She might as well be a ghost.”

“Our presence is obvious, but it discourages her should she be around.” assured Wallcroft.

Bakugou bit his lip. “So basically this woman can turn a hero into a villain yeah? Heh, bet the League of Villains wished they had her when they kidnapped me.”

“Honestly surprised you haven’t become one yourself with your record.” laughed Griffin, enraging Bakugou. 

“Stay safe kids.” chuckled Griffin as he and Wallcroft took off.

“So, there’s a villain on the loose?” frowned Akko.

Diana groaned. “As if we needed more drama right now. And from a villain of all things.”

Todoroki knitted his eyebrows. “I’m more concerned about her quirk being the ability to change someone’s morality. No wonder high alert soldiers are patrolling this town.”

Deku got serious. “Yeah! She could just instantly turn someone like All Might into a villain, which would be...less than ideal.!”

Frank tried to lift everyone’s spirits. “Come on! You guys have faced worse. Besides, you probably won’t even run into the maniac before the SAS arrest her.”

“I’d rather have her shot.” admitted Bakugou. 

“But I guess we’ve faced worst if push comes to shove.” admitted Todoroki.

“Yeah, I’ve noticed that something threatens to destroy the world once a month at Luna Nova.” noted Amanda.

“Sadly, I get the feeling we’re doomed to be attracting this kind of attention for the rest of our lives,” pondered Diana as she faced Akko. “Which means more misadventures with you.”

“Yay!” obliviously cheered Akko. “It’ll be fun huh?”

Andrew turned to face someone walking their way and his expression turned sour. The witches and Frank did the same when they looked where Andrew did. The heroes were confused, but the expression on the young blond man said it all.

“What are you doing here Blackwell?” chided Andrew.

“No one invited you Louis.” hissed Akko.

Deku’s mouth dropped. “Blackwell, as in British defense minister Blackwell?”

“Sadly his son.” confirmed Diana.

Louis Blackwell rolled his eyes. “You two are needed back at Appleton for our literature lecture! I didn’t think you two would be foolish enough to skip class to talk to some witches and little heroes, but I know well how you two flirt with the paranormal.”

“We’re not exactly friends Louis, so I get the feeling that lecture isn’t important if you came on over to get us.” pointed Andrew.

“Two of our top students are straying from the correct path. I had a valid reason to leave.” defended Louis.

“Come on man, it’s just some fun.” frowned Frank.

“Fun?” laughed Louis. “Quirks and magic are two sides of the same coin, wicked forces that have held back human progress for centuries.”

Now the witches and heroes were all united against something.

Bakugou gritted his teeth. “Hey buddy! You’re the one who looks like they got yanked out of last millenium. I can’t tell if you’re a dumbass or an asshole, but shit talking some of the most powerful heroes and witches around must mean you have a death wish. ”

Diana paused and looked Bakugou. He had stood up for the witches against someone else, and just called her powerful. True, he admitted their strength regarding broom flying, but this time Bakugou did it without prompt or encouragement.

Louis shrugged Bakugou off. “Oh boy, not a day goes by where I don’t wish unstable and neurotic individuals had access to destructive powers.”

“What are you talking about, you don’t look like you have a powerful quirk.” joked Akko.

Louis stroked his hair. “Eh, your fingertips containing a bit of gel never not came in handy and doesn’t make me a potential major threat to society. Unlike mr blow up everything.”

“Well, no amount of hair gel is gonna help you once I burn that wig off you.” threatened Bakugou.

Louis ignored him, looking at Amanda and raised an eyebrow. “Have I seen you before?”

“Thankfully for me, you haven’t.” sneered Amanda. 

“You remind me of some delinquent in Appleton,” shook Louis. “And I’m getting a similar feeling of insolence towards you.”

Before Amanda could respond, Todoroki stepped forward, quietly fuming. “Hey, I don’t get what your problem is, but if you don’t cease being hostile, then you’re gonna end up in a fight you can’t ever hope to win.”

Deku placed a hand on his mouth. He never saw Todoroki this expressive in his threats before. It was a little safe to say he was catching on himself. 

“I’m not foolish enough to take you guys on in a brawl even though I’m no slouch myself in a gentleman’s duel.” countered Louis.

“And I thought they needed actual gentleman to get in those.” snarked Diana.

“You wouldn’t know one if he bit you on the neck witch so I’m not surprised by your arrogant and wicked remarks.” laughed Louis.

Bakugou stomped towards Louis and looked him did the eye, not caring that the latter slightly towered him. “That was your last chance! So please tell me how you’d like to be incinerated? Like holy fuck how did you not think cursing her was gonna end well for you!”

Diana froze. Most people seemed focused on Bakugou getting ready to blow up Louis. She was more concerned about Louis’ insult against her being Bakugou’s final straw of all things. That came out of nowhere.

Louis on the other hand smiled wildly. “You know, I saw those elite soldiers patrolling Blytonbury on my way here. I’m sure they’d be happy to fill your body with bullets if you killed the son of the Defense Minister.”

Andrew raised an eyebrow. “The SAS are loyaler to my father than your’s.”

Deku raised his voice. “Can we maybe avoid killing each other over an argument.”

Akko agreed. “Yeah, we’re just gonna prove him right if we hurt him.”

Bakugou could finally see a bit of fear in Louis’ eyes, which was enough to make him back down. The knowledge of SAS officers put a lid on hsi anger.

Louis’ smug expression vanished, but he reaffirmed himself. “I knew for a fact that Andrew was gonna meet Akko, who I know has her insipid little dream about magic coming back.”

Now Deku snapped. “What? She came from a quirkless background in a country where heroes were everything, proved that you didn’t need to be born with magic power to use it and endures constant torment to achieve her goals! What are you Mr. born with a silver spoon in mouth? You’re nothing compared to her! Nothing!”

Akko blinked slowly, almost blushing. “Thanks..uh..”

Todoroki eyes widened. “Wow Deku.”

Deku’s eyes widened upon realizing what he did. “I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry!”

Deku bowed up and down, begging for forgiveness.

“And he blew it again.” sighed Amanda.

Louis rolled his eyes. “You guys have some spine, so I have a proposition for you.”

“We’re not interested Louis.” deadpanned Andrew.

“Oh, and I thought you’d be up for it.” teased Louis.

“Let him talk!” sneered Bakugou, unable to resist a challenge.

Louis smirked. “So my mother allowed me to host a segment on the BBC’s Saturday afternoon debate panel. Frank, Andrew, when I heard you two were visiting those witches alongside some heroes, I figured it was the perfect time to set up a three way debate on the future of magic and quirks and their relevance to society at large. Of course, us Appleton folk would be the voice of normalcy and reason amid all this.”

Diana tried not to laugh. “We would never..”

“IT’S ON!” yelled Bakugou.

Deku and Todoroki looked at each other and were about to protest, but Bakugou stopped them before they could.

“You two are going to agree with this if you really want to be heroes!” commanded Bakugou. “We are not going to be defeated by this moldy motherfucker in anything!”

Akko bumped her fists together, looking determined. “Yeah, this is the best chance for me to get my cause out to the public.”

Diana face palmed. “Great, now I’m going to have to agree so you don’t embarrass witches on the World Stage.”

Amanda frowned. “And I’m gonna have to follow you five if I want that extra credit don’t I?”

Frank glanced Andrew. “I don’t agree with Louis at all, but do you think we should take part?”

Andrew nodded. “If only to undermine him. And Louis, you sure you wanna do this?”

Louis groaned. “My father has been courting a bunch of private military companies lately that have funky ideas about combined hero and magical soldiers. Three CEOs of these merc companies, Cynthia Lintorn, Oswald Irving and Norah Orman form the unholy trinity of these stupid idealists and their growing companies have garnered my father’s attention.”

The witches and heroes were surprised by such a statement. 

“Heroes and magic folk working together in the same unit?” gasped Deku. That sounded perfect. His ideological objections to private military companies aside (even he wanted further regulation on hero society in Japan at points), that was like a perfect marriage. 

“As private military?” checked Todoroki.

Louis nodded. “They’re gonna go from obscure to mainstream when they conduct their presentation at Appleton in a few weeks, so I want to shut down their ideas before they receive state support. I’m sorry, but quirk soldiers belong in tightly regulated special forces groups, not private or grunt military institutions.” 

“So your solution is to slander magic and heroes?” questioned Diana.

Louis shrugged. “My dad didn’t like witches and heroes up until a few months ago, but now he’s getting drunk on delusions. He’s gonna unleash something he can’t control and I want the dangers of magic and quirks to be known to the country before they grow in importance.”

Bakugou smirked. “You’re gonna lose.”

Louis smirked back. “With you as my opponent, not likely.”

Akko crossed her arms. “We’ll we’re not gonna be silenced by your lies and snobbery.”

Diana twitched. Amanda shook her head. They felt they were going to have to spend most of the debate cringing at Akko.

Deku gulped. “Well, I hope we can at least put an end to all feuds on Saturday.”

“I just wish it wasn’t so public.” sighed Todoroki. 

“So is there anything else you’d like to say?” inquired Andrew to Louis.

Louis shook his head. “That will be on Saturday. Until then, I wasn’t lying when I said that literature lecture was important. They switched the topic and are giving people thirty minutes to make it, and we’re down by twenty. I can’t have you on debate if you get in trouble.”

“Oh, well thanks man.” remarked Frank.

Todoroki wasn’t convinced. “You could have texted them. You just wanted to an excuse to mock us.”

Diana agreed. “As is standard for him.”

Andrew made his way forward, bumping into Louis to get him to follow. “Sorry he had to barge in. We’ll be taking him out of your hair.”

“Please.” hissed Bakugou.

“We’ll see you Saturday right?” called out Akko.

Andrew smiled warmly at the group, especially at Akko. “Of course you will.”

Frank waved as he began to leave. “Oh, and Bakugou, Deku and Todoroki, thanks for the photo!”

“No problem Frank!” beamed Deku.

The heroes and witches watched the Appleton boys leave, Frank and Andrew watching Louis closely to make sure he didn’t cause more commotion.

Deku frowned at Akko’s rather dreamy look when she watched Andrew make his exist. He was so used to getting her attention that it was jarring to see her give it to someone else. Still, he knew wasn’t entitled to it.

As if Akko could read her mind though, Akko looked right at him and with her own smile. “I think we should head back now ourselves.”

“Huh!” muttered Deku. “Oh yeah..yeah..maybe we should.”

“And can you please hold your own bags Bakugou?” requested Todoroki, which Bakugou took from his and Deku’s hands without complaint.

Amanda looked at the now evening sky. “Time goes by when you’re yelling at people it seems.”

Diana began walking and the group followed. “Come on, curfew will be in effect soon.”

The witches and heroes followed Diana’s lead, rather silently as they contemplated on their afternoon in Blytonbury. So many revelations and discussions were held in that time, and that wasn’t even getting to all the events that transpired in class and at lunch in the morning. To think, all of these events happened on just one day. 

What really also got to them however, was some of the more awkward feelings that were developing between them. They witches and heroes knew each other for a little over a day and yet, under all the excitement, tensions, enthusiasm and snark they had for each other, something more was lurking underneath. 

No one wanted to admit those feelings because it couldn’t have possibly taken this short to develop them. They weren’t even sure what they were. Yet, it felt like there was a mysterious fate pushing them together.

They finally neared the edge of the town on the hill that lead to Luna Nova. The only thing filling their ears at this point were crickets  
. 

That was until Bakugou heard a noise, a small hum that came from one of the witches. He was about to tell whoever was humming to shut it, but the more he listened, the more compelling he found it. It was strange, that someone as vicious as him would like a calming hum.

Bakugou darted his eyes, and found the source coming from none other than Diana herself. The others didn’t notice her humming, and even Diana was going about it like it was nothing.

After a brief moment of Bakugou admiring the noise she was making, Diana’s eye caught his.

“Is there a problem?” asked Diana.

“Noticed you humming.” replied Bakugou.

Diana frowned. “Yeah. I don’t do it often unless I’m bored out of my mind.”

Bakugou grinned. “Care for another argument then? You’ve gotten better at them.”

“No thanks, we’ll settle our sacred feud on Saturday. How about that? I crave for some peace until then.” requested Diana.

Bakugou took a deep breath, but agreed. “Yeah, but you can keep humming if you want.”

Diana smirked and giggled. “Well, then I’ll just do that.”

Behind them, Amanda took the playful exchange between Diana and Bakugou to say something to Todoroki that was bugging her.

“Hey.” called out Amanda.

“Yeah?” replied Todoroki.

“I noticed you sticking up for me a lot back there,” noted Amanda. “I can handle myself, but I gotta say I appreciate it.”

Todoroki looked unsure of himself. “If you think I’m overbearing…”

“No no.” assured Amanda. “I like that little united front we form. Especially against our more excitable friends.”

Todoroki’s frown turned upside down. “Yeah, I agree.”

The two shared a smile and continued on. 

Everyone was silent for a while, until Akko broke it once she was reminded of something she wanted to show the heroes.

“Oh hey guys!” called out Akko.

“What is it?” inquired Deku.

“I wanted to you guys to see something cool.” answered Akko. She turned around and made her way down a few steps on the hill.

Diana and Amanda quickly followed Akko as if it was an emergency.

“Don’t you dare get lost in the forest Akko!” yelled Diana.

“Huh?” cried Akko. “No I just want to show them the view.”

“The view?” said Amanda with confusion.

“Yeah, this is where you can see all of Blytonbury closely without trees or hills blocking it and it looks so cool!” explained Akko.

She pointed to the town, redirecting the gaze of the heroes.

The heroes looked at the night sky, which was full of stars and the glowing moon that bathed the witches with its light, bringing out their best features. The combined image of them in front the illuminated Blytonbury was something straight out of a fairy tail. As a bonus, the breeze began blowing their hair majestically. 

“Beautiful.” gasped Deku, gazing at Akko’s bright face.

“What?” checked Akko.

“Er..the view is beautiful.” corrected Deku.

Akko smiled. “I knew you’d like it.”

Amanda and Diana giggled Deku’s adorable helplessness. Todoroki and Bakugou couldn’t help but almost chuckle themself at his display. 

Still, the heroes enjoyed a full moment of looking at the witches and the scenery around them, with the witches themselves discreetly catching on where the heros’ real gaze lied.

Satisfied, they made their way back to Luna Nova.


	11. Dungeon Exploring Class

The next few days were tame. Classes went by and any attempts by Bakugou and Diana to have an argument quickly ended when they agreed to settle the score on Saturday. Still, talking about neutral topics and acting casual was hard given that there still existed a certain awkwardness between the heroes and their guides, and the other witches were still uneasy.

The only real excitement in that week was broom flying class, which really just amounted to the heroes facing off Diana, Amanda and the still "untouchable on a broom when getting quirks blasted at her for some reason" Akko.

Friday however, presented a new twist for everyone. Instead of broom flying, the heroes were going to be traversing one of the school's dungeons.

The three warmed up in the waiting room, while the witches sat on their desks, many of them wondering why they weren't going to traverse the dungeon as normal.

In between the two groups, Ursula cleared her throat and explained the situation. "Alright, I hope you're all prepared for something exciting!" she announced.

"Whatever it is, bring it on!" grinned Bakugou.

"So, you three are going to head down the stairs and into the depths below where you'll be tasked with collecting three treasures within the period. Simple enough?" Ursula explained.

Deku knew the catch. "Aren't there a bunch of monsters and magical traps in the area though?"

Ursula smirked. "And we've upped the usual caliber from what we would normally throw at the witches, given that we expect you all to be rather….unrestrained in dealing with them."

Diana rolled her eyes as she sat on the sideline, wishing the professors would have let her taken the more challenging entities. Still, she acknowledged it was necessary given how the heroes had a greater killing capacity.

Todoroki glanced at the witches. "Wasn't this where you all had to fight off some dragon that almost destroyed the school?"

"Yeah! And I used the Shiny Rod to take it down!" remembered Akko, while Diana face palmed given that her accidentally unleashing the dragon was one of her greatest failures.

Amanda gave the heroes some advice. "Just don't underestimate anything!"

Deku raised his hand, and Ursula let him speak. "So professor Ursula, what exactly is the educational value of this lesson?"

"Nerd!" went Bakugou and a good number of the witches.

Diana sighed. "I mean that's the whole point of this, right?"

Akko silently nodded in agreement, but more for the sake of Deku's dignity. She hated seeing things torture the lovable broccoli haired boy.

Ursula ignored the class. "Well, there's been little to no interaction between heroes and the magical spirits and beings that regularly plague our world. This is our chance to see how your quirks, which are bluntly very effective at fighting, would do when traversing treacherous magical locations."

"So it's a crossover between our combat simulations?" checked Todoroki.

"Something like that," nodded Ursula, directing the boys to wall filled with pinned photos. Many of them depicted generations of witches, and a few wizards too, in front of magical looking caves and fortresses that they all once infiltrated.

"For generations, witches and wizards have always been called upon to search and loot all sorts of magical dungeons. Each have their own twists and horrors, but the treasures that lie within them are plenty and bountiful as well." explained Ursula.

Deku pressed his face against the wall in awe, looking closely at all of the magical excavation teams. The photos had to have dated since the 19th century.

He gasped loudly. "Hey this witch looks just like you professor Ursula!"

The heroes and Ursula glanced at a photo depicting a woman resembling her dressed in camouflage, giving a professional salute while a group of similarly dressed wizards and witches glared at her.

Ursula laughed. "Oh that's my ancestor, also a Luna Nova graduate of course, with elite magical French forces in Vietnam. She was their brave leader, and they were supposed to be her loyal soldiers."

Ursula's smile dropped. "That photo was taken shortly before she was shot in the back of the arm because she wouldn't stop singing a song about Fortunate Sons or however the legend went." She would have mentioned that her ancestor's performances and beautiful voice were what partially inspired her to become Shiny Chariot, but that was revealing too much. Also she was sure her elite status was supposed to be classified information.

Akko called out from the bleachers. "So what are we supposed to be doing!"

Ursula pointed the witches to a magical screen perched on the walls. "We will be keeping track of the heroes' progress. We'll be be testing your ability to make observations and conclusions based on how quirks interact with a setting attuned for the magical."

Akko groaned at having to take notes.

"Are you going to get bored and fall asleep?" snarked Diana.

"Of course not! What if Deku gets hurt?" blurted Akko.

"I'm more concerned about the monsters honestly." admitted Amanda.

Ursula flicked her wand and magically opened the door to the dungeon.

"Alright, before I tell you three what treasure you have to look out for, is there anything you'd like to know?" inquired Ursula.

Todoroki placed a finger on his chin. "Shouldn't something like this be run by a professional hero first to account for all possible faults?"

"Don't worry, the traps and monsters are tougher than normal, but they've been adjusted for your level of...brutality. The point is to learn from you, and we'd obviously like you to be alive for the whole thing." explained Ursula.

Bakugou raised his hand as well. "And we get to keep the treasures, right?"

Ursula winked. "Normally I'd say no, but I myself placed the three treasures you all have to look for and get to keep! Inside a Contain And Tame unit are three golden age and Plus Ultra edition All Might trading cards that are still sealed in their packaging!"

WOOSH!

In that literal instant, the three heroes sped down the dungeon like there was no tomorrow, their quirks charged up to a powerful level as well. The speed at which they raced into the dungeon created a gust of wind that blew back the hair and hats of all of the witches, creating some minor annoyance.

After the brief shock, Ursula blinked and grinned. "I knew that would work!"

Akko defended the heroes to the still shocked witches. "Well, if it was a Shiny Chariot card, I'd do the same!"

Ursula whispered to herself. "If only those things were still in demand."

All the while, Bakugou, Todoroki and Deku were running as fast as they could down the staircase and into the depths of whatever waited for them. They didn't know how Ursula got her hands on those hero collector items, but they weren't complaining.

The area around them would have gotten darker and darker, but the light generated from their quirks provided a form of pseudo night vision. From the perspective of the witches, it was hard for Ursula to keep flashing between the magical cameras to keep track of their position.

A bunch of purple coloured magical bats suddenly appeared before the heroes, but the attempt of those critters to strike was cut short by Bakugou's explosion that burned them to crisp ash.

The force of his attack however also caused some of the bricks holding the structure in place to break loose or crumble.

Ursula buzzed on the intercom, communicators carried by boys blaring her voice. "Hey! Be careful! This is still school property you know!"

Bakugou had his arms grabbed by both Deku and Todoroki.

"She's right," called out Todoroki. "We can't get too excited."

"Even if it is for those precious All Might cards!" agreed Deku.

Bakugou shrugged them off. "This is our only chance to get those cards for a price doesn't cost us China's economy! And do you idiots need to be reminded that she mentioned we have to find them within the period?"

Deku and Todoroki were about to protest until the sound of a loud roar cut them off.

The heroes glanced at the direction of the sound and found a large hulking Orc coming at them, waving some sort of club as it readied to fight.

Of course, the entire thing was abruptly cut short when Bakugou fired an explosion at the greenskin, sending it flying and depriving it of the pummeling it wanted to have. The burned Orc crashed into a sort of ornate box behind it before its corpse vanished from the realm.

Todoroki raised an eyebrow. "Nice to know that our quirks still work on these things."

Deku's attention was diverted by another set of creatures. "Speaking of things, check those things out guys!"

Out of the box where the Orc crashed, a series of lizard like entities crept out. They were small salamander like beings, albeit with some clearly magical markings on them.

Needless to say, Diana and Akko's hearts skipped a beat when they realize what the heroes were looking at. Ursula meanwhile had hope, but was ready to pull the plug.

The heroes, who didn't know any better, crept towards the lizard like entities, the red and black one being closest to them.

Deku crouched down and stared at the creature. "This thing looks familiar to me. Although I thought it would be bigger."

The creature practically spat at Deku, screeching out loud to compensate for its small size.

Bakugou shrugged it off and raised palm. "Oh well, it's dead anyway."

An explosion was fired at the salamander like creature, only for it to not incinerate unlike everything else Bakugou had shot at with his attacks. Instead, the explosion had the opposite of the desired effect on the creature, as it swallowed the flames.

The creature grew in size, much to the shock of the heroes and the worry of the witches observing them in the waiting room.

'What the fuck!" blurted out Bakugou, as the now larger creature prepared to lunge at the trio.

Todoroki responded by setting the creature on fire with his attack, but also preparing his ice quirk in case his theory proved true.

As expected, the creature grew further, sprouting larger wings and revealing itself to be an unambiguous dragon. With its strength having multiplied, the dragon roared out loud and spat out a flame which the heroes thankfully managed to predict and dodge, having a pretty good idea of a dragon's general attacks from pop culture.

Deku bit his lip as he sidestepped from its flames. "This would be really cool if it wasn't going to kill us!"

The dragon's mouth glowed with another flame attack, only for it to abruptly meet its end once Todoroki shot a massive spear of ice through its throat.

The dragon didn't have a moment to comprehend the massive hole in its body as it fell and crumbled to dust.

Ursula's voice blazed on the intercoms. "Thank God, I thought I'd have to cancel this early."

The boys could have also sworn they heard Akko and Diana sighing in relief.

"So dragons absorb flames huh, well that's nice to know I guess." pondered Todoroki.

"And I guess that's what gave Akko and the other witches a hard time a while back," noted Deku. "I thought the dragons just absorbed magic."

"Speaking of which, we got a few more over there and they look pissed." noted Bakugou.

A number of other mini dragons all roared at the hero trio, pissed at the deaths of one of their own. In retaliation, Todoroki placed his hand on the ground and shot out a spiky ice floor against them, piercing and killing the red colored dragons.

The ones colored white however were a different story. They instead absorbed the ice into their bodies, reveling in the cold as they too grew into larger and proper dragons.

The two white dragons smugly grinned at Todoroki as they readied their ice breath. However, it seemed the lacked the ability to understand that the heroes had caught on to their attack patterns.

Todoroki and Bakugou each launched a blazing attack at the white dragons, dissolving both of them to ash before each of them could land a strike.

Deku took note. "So the white ones absorb ice. I guess we gotta pay attention to their colors."

"Speaking of which." Todoroki pointed to the last remaining mini dragon, colored blue.

Before anyone made a move, Bakugou quickly turned to his communicator. "Hey lady, what do the blue ones shoot out of their mouth?"

"Oh, blue dragons shoot out lightning." informed Ursula on the intercoms.

Bakugou smirked. "Well, good think Kaminari isn't here."

Deku charged up his own quirk to squash the mini dragon like a bug, any feelings of empathy for it long gone as he knew what they were capable of.

"Oh no you don't!" blurted Bakugou as he sent an explosion against the final dragon, taking it out without the chance for it to grow.

"But I had it Kaachan!" protested Deku.

"I see that electric pattern that sparks out of your body when you use your quirk! I'm not letting you fuck things up!" glared Bakugou.

"But my quirk isn't electric based!" countered Deku.

Todoroki shrugged. "Better safe than sorry?"

The heroes continued their search for the All Might trading cards. From the other side of the dungeon's door, Diana began jotting down her observations. "So dragons apparently don't absorb quirks like they absorb magic, unless the quirk corresponds to their element it seems."

Ursula agreed. "Right, I had a feeling that was the case, but there weren't any records of non magical dragon hunters to confirm this. At least I'm sure this applies to chromatic dragons. Ancient dragons just like to absorb magic regardless of the spell."

Akko raised her hand. "So you can't exactly just napalm a fire dragon right?"

"Apparently not." confirmed Ursula.

"You'll probably forget that and feed it the force of the sun the next time you meet one." snarked Amanda.

"So would Diana!" defended Akko.

"Oh shut up." hissed Diana. "Unleash one ancient dragon and the world never lets it go."

"There you go being mean again." pouted Akko.

All the while, the heroes progressed with their journey. No Contain And Tame unit was in sight. Various paths were explored, holes in the wall were peeked into and the insides of various creatures were inspected for treasure.

Soon enough, the sounds of various creatures and spirits speaking amongst themselves filled the ears of the trio.

"Does anyone speak monster?" frowned Deku.

"Bakugou what are they saying?" joked Todoroki.

"Fuck off." hissed Bakugou.

The whispering of the supernatural stopped for a moment. Then suddenly, a horde of creatures began creeping from the cracks and dark spaces in the dungeon, trying to swarm and charge the heroes.

"There's a lot of them coming at us now," gulped Deku as he charged his quirks. "I think they just formed a united front against us, they don't look like they're gonna break over petty differences."

Bakugou readied his explosions. "Aw, I appreciate their useless effort."

Todoroki ignited his flames and ice, and once he was sure there were no chromatic elemental dragons around, unleashed his fury with little restraint. Bakugou too rained an explosive fire on the magical army, while Deku moved at lightning speeds to crack the bodies of all that stood in his way.

The witches stared at the screen displaying the carnage. While they all had their own incidents in the dungeon that required them to vanish and destroy certain beings, the way the heroes were going about it practically amounted to a massacre. Furthermore, their attacks didn't exactly just zap a creature away from existence in a comical faction, but rather displayed the open brutality of killing something.

"If any of you need a bucket to vomit there's one in the corner." muttered Ursula as Lotte and some of the less strong willed witches almost fainted at the sight of flying guts.

Ursula called to Deku. "Can you tell us what you're fighting against?"

Deku's voice replied amid the sounds of violence. "A Gretchin? Wait, it's dead thanks to Todoroki's ice."

A sound of Deku's charged up leg hitting something was registered, followed by his confused voice "Was that a Genestealer? Yeah that's dead too."

For the next few minutes, the witches watched the confusing scenes before them, with only Deku's reports amid all the fighting being the source of any context.

"Salamander. Dead."

"Minotaur. Dead."

"Raptor. Dead."

"Flesh Tearer. Dead."

"Doom Eagle. Dead."

"Soul Drinker. Dead."

"Space Shark?...Dead."

As Ursula noted and feared, the three heroes didn't really know the full extent of their strength. When it came to facing off magical entities or robots, they would utilize a version of their quirk that had great killing potential. When it came to human enemies however, none of them exactly had the drive to kill yet, not even Bakugou, thus unknowingly holding back some of their attacks,

All the while, the witches began writing down their observations which more or less amounted to 'don't fuck with them if you want your body in one piece' which wasn't new news.

Akko's mouth had been agape the whole time, until Sucy pushed her chip up, finally snapping her back to reality. "Ms. Ursula! I think we're gonna have to summon more monsters next time!"

"No shit Akko." muttered Amanda.

Diana had another concern. "Ma'am, I'm more concerned about the fact that they seem to vanishing ethereal entities with no physical form with ease."

Bakugou's voice blazed on the intercom. "Easy blondie! The light from our explosive and flame attacks sends those ghost things packing. Straight out of a horror novel."

Deku agreed. "Yeah! It's just like with you and Dark Shadow back at the sports festival Kaachan!"

Diana quickly jotted that point down. It was at least pleasant to know that heroes with certain quirks could be called on spirit duty.

Soon enough, there was disarray in the dungeons. As numbers dwindled, the creatures that haunted the dungeon didn't exactly know how to work together anymore.

The entities began tearing each other down as they began fleeing from the heroes. Creature beat creature to buy time for their own escape while The Luna Nova Anti Hero Front and the Anti Hero Front of Luna Nova turned on each other for shelter.

Deku smiled as he stomped on a magic spider. "I was wrong! They did end up splitting! This is just like one of my communist party meetings!"

"So much for monster unity." muttered Todoroki as he froze the last minotaur.

Once the last of the creatures were supposedly gone, Bakugou stretched victoriously, until a noise took him by surprise.

"Meow!"

The group looked at the floor and saw a robot cat like entity skirting around their feet.

Todoroki groaned, suddenly realizing what the acronym of Contain And Tame was. "Why do I get the feeling that's the Contain And Tame unit?"

Ursula's happy voice rang. "You found the CAT unit! Great for catching vermin, but even better for storing treasure inside. Just pick it up and nab your prize boys!"

"Finally!" exclaimed Bakugou, who crouched to pick up the magitek CAT, only for it to dart into a crack in the walls.

"Get back here pussy!" gritted Bakugou, firing an explosion at the wall.

Deku whelped. "Kaachan! You could've just destroyed it and the All Might cards."

"Quit your whining! I know my strength." dismissed Bakugou.

The smoke cleared and sure enough, the CAT unit was untouched, albeit flipped to its side by the rubble.

"See!" gloated Bakugou as he walked on over, picked up the CAT, opened the compartment in its belly and revealed the prize.

Bakugou waved three glorious and ultra rare All Might trading cards in the sky, which were practically glowing despite the lack of light to reflect off of them in the cave.

The heroes split the three cards amongst themselves and were about to make a move, until something caught Todoroki's eyes.

Guys, I think we failed a spot check." noticed Todoroki.

Bakugou and Deku looked into the dark abyss, which quite literally stared back as pairs of green eyes resembling snarling eyes stared at the boys. Sounds of mechanical works and noises similar to a computer booting up were playing.

Ursula gulped upon seeing what was going on in the cameras. "Constanze, please tell me you built a bunch of magitek skeleton bots without permission and placed them in the dungeon."

Constanze shook her head no.

The lights in the hidden room behind the wall flared green, and illuminated a number of mechanical beasts resembling deformed human skeletons.

"Oh great, what now?" shook Bakugou.

Ursula began screaming through the mic. "Those are Necromundas! An ancient magitek race of robots that rebelled against their magical creators and were buried all over Earth! Get out now!"

"Where's the fun in that!" laughed Bakugou as he shot his explosive attacks at the rising magical robots, causing a number of them to explode.

Right before the three of them could make further attacks however, they witnessed something that got them on their toes.

Rather than staying dead, the blown up limbs of the destroyed Necromundas began magically piecing themselves back together. It was as if Bakugou's attack did nothing. They all could have sworn the Necromunda was laughing at them with its expression.

Deku flinched for a second and kicked off the head of one of them before it could finish rebuilding, only for the head to reattach itself just a moment after.

Todoroki took his turn by trying to burn and freeze the Necromundas, only for them to break out of the ice and reform any limb that was burned off.

"For the sake of our cards and lives, how about a tactical retreat?" suggested Todoroki.

The group wordlessly agreed and darted for the other side, only for them to instinctively dodge into cover once they sensed a series of projectiles being fired at them. Their instincts proved true as the Necromundas began shooting at the trio with a sort of spell-gun like weapon.

The magitek robots were now clearly gloating and giving out their mechanical laughs.

The witches watching were awestruck and horrified. For all their former prowess, the heroes were clearly outmatched.

"They're not gonna get killed right?" gulped Akko.

Ursula adjusted her glasses as she prepared to make her own venture down the dungeons. "No, but they will be stunned and taken prisoner, forced to polish metal skeletons for the rest of eternity."

All the while, the sounds were getting a little too real for the witches. The weapons of the Necromundas sounded like conventional gunfire, and the screams of the heroes were not helping either.

"We're fucking pinned down!" called out Bakugou.

"There's too many of them!" yelled Todoroki.

"Get down now!" roared Bakugou.

"They just keep coming!" cried Deku.

"They won't die!" screamed Todoroki.

"GAME OVER GUYS! GAME OVER!" screeched Deku.

Just as she was about to open the dungeon's door, Ursula froze in place as the sounds of the battle caused her to have visions of the past. Sounds her ancestor once heard in a similar situation amid her own battles. Much like the pinned down heroes, Ursula witnessed witches and wizards of a time long gone desperately trying to take cover amid a hailstorm of fire.

"Well Ms. Callistis, it seems France's greatest witch can't beat Vietnam's greatest commander!" gloated general Vo Nguyen Giap as lighting and rain surrounded him, holding her wand triumphantly while she dangled from a cliff.

"You won't get away with this Giap!" she hissed, still wondering how the hell he overpowered her.

"Oh, we already have! And we'll beat out those yankees trying to bail you out too!" laughed Giap, who then kicked her down, causing her to fall three feet into a puddle. A muddy puddle.

Diana waved a hand in front of Ursula as the latter mummered. "Ma'am, there's no way you're old enough to be having a Vietnam flashback, nor is it the right time!"

Ursula shook her head back to reality. "I'll have you know that certain witches can access the genetic memory of their ancestors."

Akko sprinted over and yelled into the intercom. "ARE YOU GUYS OKAY!"

"Oh yeah it's fine." said a surprisingly assured Deku.

"What!" went everyone in the room.

"Yeah, while you were freaking out, it turns out the best way to deal with them is to freeze and then melt them with not a single bit remaining for those shits to regenerate!" gloated Bakugou.

"And good think I can freeze the floor from cover." added Todoroki.

Ursula slowly stared at the screen, and witnessed the heroes having already turned the fight in their favor while she was having a second hand flashback. Deku distracted the Necromundas with his speed, Todoroki froze them, and then he and Bakugou would incinerate them whole without a metal scrap left over.

Ursula took a sigh in relief. At least there was no repeat of the ancient dragon incident.

Finally, the heroes laid eyes on the final Necromunda, this one decorated in some sort of ornate Pharaoh-like dress. Its break from the norm clearly signaled it as a leader, one pissed off at the loss of its minions like the demon commander the heroes fought days ago.

The Pharaoh Necromunda twitched its magitek eyes and laid down its spell gun. It was now the heroes' turn to gloat.

Instead, it began to roar and leak a smoky magical substance through its eyes and mouth. If it could speak, it would be obviously cursing the heroes, but it had another kind of curse in mind.

Even worse for the witches, the Pharaoh Necromunda's scream shut down the screen the witches were using to observe the heroes.

"What the!" screeched Akko.

"Come on, we're getting to the good part." muttered Sucy.

"Are they okay?" frowned Amanda.

"I can still hear them on the speakers." assured Diana.

"Right, they're fine, but that leader's scream cursed the screen." explained Ursula, trying to cast every spell she knew that could get it to work.

The final battle was almost over, even if the witches couldn't see the outcome.

Todoroki prepared to freeze it in place only for the Pharaoh Necromunda to self destruct on its own accord, sending the abnormal smoke it generated flying.

Luckily, Todoroki and Bakugou were out of the explosion radius, but the same could not be said about Deku, who got shrouded in the smoke before he could have time to react. Normally, such an explosion would have not hurt him, especially since he was mostly hit by just the smoke, but the Pharaoh Necromunda had another plan.

Bakugou and Todoroki quickly covered their mouths and noses, making sure to not inhale any of the smoke even though none of it was in breathing distance.

"DEKU!" roared Todoroki. "Are you okay!"

"Come on! That's a pathetic way to go out!" yelled Bakugou.

Suddenly, a voice called out from the smoke. It was in Japanese and rather high pitched. "Did we win guys?"

Bakugou's brain split in two and his mouth dropped. "No….just no…"

Todoroki was confused. "Deku is that you?" The smoke finally cleared and Todoroki shared Bakugou's expression. "Deku? Oh...no.."

Deku was there, technically unscatheted, but changed in an unfortunate way by the curse of the Necromunda that he didn't seem to notice. "Are we real heroes now?"

Bakugou was shaking with a mixture of horror and anger.

Todoroki took a moment to string his words together. "Yeah, and you should be speaking English by the way."

"Okay!" said Deku in english with his new voice. "Let's go!"

Ursula's voice blazed on the intercoms once more. "Guys, are you okay? I can't see you on the screen anymore."

"We're on our way back." muttered Todoroki.

"What happened to Deku?" also inquired Ursula.

Bakugou and Todoroki ignored her and guided the changed Deku.

The trio trekked back up to waiting room, thankfully encountering no more trouble or anomalies with the obvious exception of Deku's predicament. How they were going to explain this to Ursula and the other witches didn't matter as the end result would be the same.

On the other side, Ursula was pacing back and forth with the other witches waiting nervously for the heroes to return.

"Don't tell me they're dead!" frowned Akko, wondering what she'd do if Deku, Bakugou and Todoroki met their end in the dungeon. Her days of mourning aside, it was not going to help her cause if the promising next generation of heroes perished in a magical setting.

"I refuse to believe those knuckleheads would go down so easily." shook Amanda.

Lotte was biting her nails. "How many people have died completing this test?"

"Calm down!" groaned Diana, who was unable to hide her own anxiety despite her attempt at a facade. "Ursula is still clearly getting life signs from them."

Sucy closed her eyes in thought. "Yeah, but what if they're coming back in a form where they wish they were dead?"

"They are kinda walking too slow for people that should be in peak physical condition." noted Amanda, who tried her hardest not to gulp.

Now everyone was freaking out on the top of their lungs. Even the ever optimistic Jasminka had a neutral expression and was munching down her chocolate bars faster than normal. Many of the witches still had their major problems with the trio of heroes, but no one wished death on them, or them turning into murderous super zombies.

Ursula formed a magical megaphone through her wand. "Everyone relax! We'll figure out what to do when we see them!"

"You mean, IF we see them!" yelped Akko, which escalated the panic.

"NO!" yelled Ursula. "There's still life and their communicators are on, but they're refusing to answer for some reason."

"So it's the horrifically injured or turned into something grotesque outcome." said Sucy.

Suddenly there was a knocking on the door. Ursula rushed to the dungeon door, readying a wand to not take any chances, and looked through the cracks where she saw Bakugou and Todoroki waiting.

Ursula took a breath of relief and opened the door, Todoroki and Bakugou stepping forward. The rest of the witch students were relieved as well, instead returning to their normal worry of when Bakugou was going to detonate a random explosion.

"Did you retrieve the trading cards?" asked Ursula.

Todoroki held up the three All Might cards, which had stains from flames and tears from combat. They'd still fetch a rather high price on the market however.

"Wait! Where's Deku?" gasped Akko, on the verge of tears.

"That idiot got hit by some stupid gas from the robot thing and well...something shitty happened to him." stated Bakugou in a way that was more annoyed than upset.

"Wha-what!" freaked out Akko.

"Is he alright?" asked Diana, placing a hand on her lips.

"Yeah," sighed Todoroki.

"Did he come back with you?" questioned Ursula.

"Sadly," groaned Bakugou. "He's hiding behind the wall."

Todoroki hesitated before speaking. "But let's just say we'll need you to fix..."

"I need to see him now!" snapped Ursula.

Todoroki took a deep breath. "Deku, you can come out now."

"I AM HERE!" hopped in Deku, who was now four years old with his suit having also transformed into his All Might onesie. The Necromunda's smoke did a wonder on him.

After a brief pause of confusion, the maternal and big sister instincts of the witches kicked in.

They all screamed with absolute joy and adoration upon seeing the cute kid Deku, and stampeded to the young boy to shower him with affection. The suddenly confused and small Deku watched in terror as the witches raced for his attention.

"HE'S SO CUTE!" yelled Akko, who picked Deku up first and hugged him close.

Diana snatched him from Akko's arms, holding him up. "What a precious boy!"

Amanda leaped into the sky and grabbed tiny Deku. "I like this little guy!"

Sucy stole Deku from Amanda's arms. "He really gets to you doesn't he?"

Lotte swiped him from Sucy and gazed into his fragile eyes. "Who's a handsome little man?"

Jasminka scooped Deku up and patted him on the head. "I can't believe how much cuter he is!"

"GIRLS!" scolded Ursula, who confiscated the scared young lad and held him close. "In ten years, you all can have your own little boy to torture."

Ursula suddenly began nuzzling Deku's cheek with her own while shaking him wildly, a motherly grin on her face. "Besides, we don't want the poor thing to be too frightened now do we?"

"No fair!" shouted Akko. "I had him first!"

Diana readied her wand. "Doesn't mean you won't have to fight me over him!"

Ursula gave out a noblewoman's haughty laugh. "As if any of you can best me!"

The witches proceeded to wrestle and blast each other for control of tiny Deku's attention, or more accurately, silent gaze.

All the while, Bakugou and Todoroki watched with a mixture of envy and cringe on their faces. As much as the heroes and witches tried to dodge the elephant in the room that was gender during their time together, seeing the witches act so girly was jarring for the two.

"I didn't think it was possible to hate Deku as a kid even more until now." gritted Bakugou.

Ten minutes passed with no end in sight. Since it was the last class of the day, the witches really could go all night if they wished. God knew what would happen if the rest of the academy found out about it.

"They're gonna hug him to death at this point." muttered Todoroki.

"I wish," Bakugou readied two explosions in his hand. "Lethal force?"

Todoroki readied his ice and fire quirk on his hands. "Hmm, more like borderline lethal."

After a minor struggle they easily won, Bakugou and Todoroki evacuated the young Deku back to their guest room, outmaneuvering the stampede of cute-crazy witches. Todoroki took the extra precaution to seal their door and the hall around it with a wall of ice to discourage any more of little Deku's 'admirers.'

Carelessly tossed on his bed, Deku luckily reverted to his normal teenage form after an hour. Even his All Might onesie changed back to his suit. Of course, he still remembered being hugged and fought over by all the witches. Thus, he retained his 'eyes widened, mouth open and dead inside' expression until he fell asleep.

As for Todoroki and Bakugou, they enjoyed the silent afternoon and night undisturbed.


	12. The Last Debate, But A New Beginning

 

In Japan, Mina called to her friends as she was flipping through channels. "Hey, aren't those our guys on the British news channel?"

Kirishima almost spat out his soda. "Whoa! Looks like Bakugou, Todoroki, and Deku are gonna representing UA huh?"

Kaminari's smile dropped. "Oh God! Bakugou, Todoroki and Deku are representing us on live TV." An open secret was that while those three were amongst the most powerful students to attend UA, they also had the combined charisma of a dead fish.

Uraraka and Yaoyorozu crept into the room and glared at the tv upon hearing who was on.

Uraraka gulped. "What's with Deku's face?"

Yaoyorozu sighed. "Unfortunately, it's the face of a man fought over by multiple suitors."

* * *

Meanwhile in the British studio, Bakugou and Todoroki stared at the cameras while standing at a podium for UA High students, alongside the students representing Luna Nova to their left and Appleton on the other end of the stage.

"Why are we here?" winced Bakugou.

"Just to suffer." groaned Todoroki.

"Hey, you're the one who agreed to this Bakugou!" reminded Diana.

"There's no way I'm letting that Blackwood chucklefuck say shit without someone reminding him of his place!" stated Bakugou harshly.

"It's Blackwell! And I'm not the one who needs to know his place!" yelled Louis, whose attempts at a further insult were restrained by Andrew and Frank holding down his shoulders.

Bakugou gritted his teeth. "I'm gonna tear him down."

Akko pouted and flayed her arms to grab the attention of her friends and the heroes. "Come on! This is our chance to prove to the world that magic can still exist and that we're not just some loners from a creepy old age. We have the chance to inspire millions right here and now!"

The fires in Akko's eyes were burning. She had her audience. She had her mission. She couldn't remember the last time a witch or wizard ever made the news, but she fully intended to use this debate as the catalyst for a new era in magic.

Diana groaned. "I don't know Akko, your goal isn't something I'd consider attainable as long as you and Bakugou insist on speaking."

Amanda agreed. "Yeah, maybe you should let Diana do all the talking."

Akko pouted. "Diana's too old fashioned, and my goal is to promote harmony in all parts of human life. At least Deku will back me up on this! He understands my dream!"

"That's if he wakes up you mean." corrected Todoroki.

Deku's pupils were still shrunken and his mouth was still agape. While everyone else on the train ride to Oxford caught a few extra hours of sleep, he had practically moved no face muscles except to breathe and blink.

Amanda stepped on over to the UA side and waved her hand in front of Deku who didn't budge. "He's still traumatized?"

"You went at him like fucking dogs chasing a steak!" reminded Bakugou.

Andrew's voice called out to the heroes. "Was Mr. Midoriya was an object of affection last night?"

Frank smiled. "Way to go buddy!"

Akko clasped her hands together. "You should have seen him! He got turned into the cutest little kid ever! We all fought for the chance to pinch his precious little cheeks."

Andrew frowned. "Not what I imagined, but okay."

Diana grinned at the UA side. "You know, if you all turned into little kids I'd imagine that you'd have no trouble winning over anyone's favor. You're far less threatening and can tell anyone anything when they're too busy cuddling you."

"Fuck off," blushed Bakugou, who wondered if being cuddled by Diana was that bad. A part of him still wished he was the one who got turned into a kid and got fought over by cute witches, not that he'd ever admit it to himself.

"What are we gonna do with Deku?" pointed out Todoroki.

Bakugou simply smacked the back of Deku's head, waking him up.

"Back off you jerk!" hissed Akko who was about to lunge at Bakugou only for Amanda to hold her back before Akko had the chance to be roasted alive.

Deku shook his head and looked around the area, wondering what the hell was going on until he realized it and gulped.

"Oh man, don't tell me we're about to start the debate!" yelled Deku. "I haven't gotten over my opening arguments, counter points, evidence, concluding…"

"Shut the fuck up and pay attention." interrupted Bakugou.

As if on cue, BBC host and Louis' mom Elizabeth Blackwell capped off her news segment. "And remember, if you see that maniac or anyone looking like her, try to alert all authorities immediately and stay away from her fiendish quirk."

Elizabeth, whose features were just as sharp and arrogant as her son's, turned to face the representatives from the three schools. "And now we will move onto our newest debate. Today we will discuss the prodding question of 'Why are magic and quirks outdated and a threat to modern civilization?' from the perspective of our global youth!"

Akko's eyes widened. "Hey, that's not a fair question!"

Deku whispered to his two classmates. "Yeah, seems a little iffy."

Diana turned to the side of Appleton, with Frank and Andrew glaring at Blackwell whose innocent grin wasn't convincing anyone.

Elizabeth began approaching the contestants. "Right here with me are the dashing students from Britain's own Appleton Academy: Andrew Hanbridge, son of the governor Hanbridge with a bright political future ahead of him with his oh so ever loyal accomplice Frank. Last, and certainly not least, is Louis Blackwell, child of our defense minister and your's truly."

Louis gave the cameras a smirk while Andrew looked pissed and Frank utterly confused at his banal introduction.

Elizabeth expression turned a little sour. "From Luna Nova, Britain's old, and surprisingly standing academy of witchcraft, we have these three...ladies. Diana Cavendish, heiress to the house of Cavendish whose bravado amongst her peers is just as controversial as her aunt's illicit activities. She is accompanied by delinquent and convict Amanda O'Neil and Atsuko Kagari, or Akko, who is honored here despite her legendary banal performance."

Bakugou instantly restrained Todoroki and Deku the second they jolted to Elizabeth for her remarks at the witches, catching them awkwardly mid jerk. He hoped this wouldn't have to be a regular thing if Akko and Amanda got insulted.

Elizabeth carefully walked on over to the heroes, her face slightly turned away from them as if she was ready to shield herself from a bomb. "And right here, we have Shoto Todoroki, the son of the number 1 hero Endeavor, and whose brooding expression we believe is a result of his father's demeanor rubbing off on him."

Todoroki eyed his classmates. "She's not that wrong."

Elizabeth continued. "And next is Katsuki Bakugou who we are surprised hasn't joined us today as a villain and Izuku Midoriya, or Deku, who we have prepared buckets for the rivers of tears he may cry. Bless his soul."

"If this is what you call journalism, then I swear to God I'm gonna blow myself up here and now!" roared Bakugou.

Deku was more surprised then angry. Louis and his mother clearly weren't the ones with the most integrity, but this was ridiculous. It was the current state of the media though.

Elizabeth ignored Bakugou. "Now let's get this over with since we have to give those private military CEOs their panel at some point today."

Louis sneered. "Hah! We'll invalidate everything they stand for before they even start. Right guys!" He tried to elicit a positive response from Andrew and Frank, who both ignored him.

Elizabeth cleared her throat. "Now then, are there any opening statements from the Appleton side on why are magic and quirks outdated and a threat to modern civilization?"

Frank shot his hand up and was called on. "Why am I here again? I think both sides can get along fine in this world."

Deku spoke up too. "Yeah, and I'm not arguing for the supremacy of quirks here!"

"And I'm not doing the same for magic!" cried Akko.

Amanda buzzed in. "Look lady, I think it would be best if we divide into pro integration, cynical and status quo camps. This division makes no sense."

"Why does one who steals from her own school think she can lecture us on order?" countered Louis.

"Speak for yourself." gritted Andrew.

"I agree with Amanda." muttered Todoroki.

"Like I'm gonna be debating on the side of a witch or that ass!" yelled Bakugou. "It's bad enough you two idiots are on my team!"

Deku raised an eyebrow, he wasn't gonna let Bakugou disrupt Akko's dream. "Well I think you and Diana have more in common than either of you would like to admit."

"Shut it nerd!" hissed Bakugou.

Todoroki sighed. "We can't work together like this."

Elizabeth nodded and probbed the group for more. "So you're admitting Todoroki that the inability for people like you to work together means that the ideal of the benevolent and empathetic superhero is outdated?"

"Outdated?" blurted Bakugou. "We're the ones debating freaks from single gender schools! Who the fuck does that anymore!"

Diana face palmed. "How many times must I tell you that we are going co-ed by the end of the decade?"

"Ditto with Appleton." noted Andrew.

Louis laughed. "Well, I foresee no issues with a co-ed Appleton, but having more wizards in Blytonburry? No sir! Think of the dangers that could arise!"

Akko frowned. "What danger? Your classmates threaten us!"

Amanda bit her lip to prevent herself from speaking out about her own disguised escapades in Appleton, but she knew old fashioned prejudices ran high there.

Diana spun the accusation around. "And in case you haven't noticed, it's not us witches and wizards that are responsible for the increasingly devastating crimes that are being committed, it's all from the quirks!"

Deku tried to defend. "B-but, quirks also produce heroes that stop those villains."

"Exactly!" added Akko. "It's not like they're all maniacs."

Diana snickered. "Does it matter? Quirks are powerful weapons that are embedded in the bodies of people when they are born. You can't take them away like guns, and now we live in a world where the worst person can be born with the ability to end millions of lives in an instant."

Bakugou groaned. "Oh, and none of this applies to magic? Magic can't do the same shit quirks can in causing giant fuck ups?"

Louis laughed. "You're all guilty of this! Quirk and magical user alike. I'm sorry, but it's just straight not normal for our world to be constantly under threat from villains like this. We lived in an era where witches and warlocks plagued humanity like warlords until they were silenced. Our brief peace has instead been disturbed by the advent of supervillains who should have stayed in comic stories."

Andrew shook his head. "No, humanity has always been threatened by some form of devastation."

Frank nodded. "Yeah, if you weren't dozing off during our Cold War lecture, you would have learned all about nuclear mutual assured destruction."

Louis flinched, prompting his mother to save him.

"Mr. Frank, Louis' GPA far surpasses everyone in the room sans Andrew, I'm sure he had that considered." muttered Elizabeth.

Bakugou then slammed his hand on the podium. "So I don't get what the big fucking deal is. We didn't nuke ourselves to fucking oblivion huh?"

"No swearing young man." scolded Elizabeth.

Right when Bakugou was about to tell her to fuck off, Todoroki and Deku did the usual of elbowing him to prevent words coming out from his mouth.

Elizabeth smirked. "My my, is there a problem with them?"

Akko shrugged. "Nah, that's how they always are."

"They're not this tame actually." noted Amanda.

"And this my global viewers," presented Louis. "Is exactly what is wrong with the idea of quirks. Sure most of us have something banal, but how can we sleep at night knowing people like them hold such devastating powers! And our foolishness to encourage these powers has brought nothing but misery."

Deku chimed in. "But all sorts of heroes bring joy with their quirks! Rescue heroes, heroes that fight villains and a whole bunch more!"

Diana countered. "The reason why we needed such heroes in the first place is because of quirks giving the rise to villains and destruction."

"Your kind was also guilty," reminded Louis. " I for one, don't want to see the return of wicked magic folk as we have our villain problem."

Akko shot back. "That's not what's going to happen when magic returns! It'll bring back the joy it once gave to everyone and quirkless people really do have the chance of learning something special."

Andrew aided Akko. "And I should point out that it was a minority of witches and warlocks that made pacts with demons to oppress humanity."

"But did that matter? The misery was disproportionate to the joy." replied Louis.

"But what about after that!" yelled Akko. "The golden age of magic had witches and wizards living in harmony with the people who feared them."

Deku nodded wildly. "Why can't we go back to that with magic?"

Diana glared at him. "Because most people aren't ready to learn magic! If we open the floodgates, who knows what kind of people we're letting in. People who are either complete twits with magic or intend to use it for malicious purposes."

"See dumbasses!" laughed Bakugou at Deku and Akko. "They don't wanna open up!"

Amanda tapped Diana on the shoulder. "You know you're just giving into Louis' argument that magic is a dangerous force."

Louis smirked as he crossed his arms, only for Frank's and Andrew's glares to wipe off his grin.

Diana looked caught. "I mean….magic shouldn't be dangerous, but Akko's idea that it should be fun and willy nilly just runs counter to its seriousness as an art that...well...can be lethal I suppose."

Bakugou placed a finger on his chin. "I feel the same about quirks. They can screw people up, but if you're gonna whine about magic not being relevant you're gonna have to take the risk of giving those quirkless shits something before the world forgets about you."

Diana thought about it. "Well, our numbers have been on the steady decline."

Bakugou took his opening. "Hey, shits like Akko and Deku get through the system all the time, so get your asses out and teach magic unless you wanna end up in the history books no one bothers to read...or unless you want people like Akko leading your comeback!"

"HEY!" yelled Deku and Akko at Bakugou's retort. For once though, Todoroki didn't elbow Bakugou to stop, as he'd happily exploit any moment Bakugou and Diana not fighting.

Elizabeth took another shot. "Oh dear, the fractions of magical and quirk society are unravelling aren't they?"

Diana ignored her and glanced at Akko. "For all of Akko's faults, she DID prove that the quirkless have the potential to use magic. And I suppose not everyone can mess up as badly as she did."

"That's the spirit." encouraged Amanda.

"What the heck!" frowned Akko on the other hand. "We're not gonna harmony when we're at each other's throats like this!"

Andrew bit his lip. "Being at each other's throats is a natural state of mankind though. That said, I believe that some adjustments would be needed by all ends of society to ensure the cohesion of magic and quirks and their ability to benefit all."

Louis cackled. "But there won't be a comeback!"

"Why you gotta be so negative pal?" sighed Frank.

Andrew shrugged. "He's accuentating the negatives because he's convinced humans have been static for their whole lives and can't possibly ever change."

"But quirks HAVE rendered us static the same way magic almost did!" complained Louis.

Elizabeth interrupted again. "Indeed, especially in technology."

Bakugou twitched. "Could you stop interfering woman!"

Deku gasped. "Kaachan! You can't talk to the host like that!"

Louis flailed his hands. "Really though! Has anyone noticed it weird that you can look at a photo of Earth from hundreds of years ago and notice how little has changed. When that first quirk appeared in 2014, technological ingenuity has gone down the gutter I tell you!"

Todoroki begrudgingly agreed. "Yeah, I find it weird that Uraraka for instance has a flip phone which I think would have phased out hundreds of years ago."

Akko groaned. "You're agreeing with him?"

Todoroki shrugged. "I do think we may rely on quirks more than we need to at times. If my experiences with my father are anything, human progress has centered around making better heroes and that's it."

"Not in Russia!" brought up Frank. "Have you seen their giant mechs!"

Louis laughed. "Oh great, one nation on Earth resisted the temptation to invest wholly in quirks. You know, during magic's so called golden age, we were relying entirely on magic to do the impossible!"

Amanda rolled her eyes. "But you're exactly the type of person who would want the average person to be reliant on some old masters."

"And that magical golden age ended when humanity industrialized no?" added Diana.

"But why haven't we advanced since?" pointed Louis. "Because most of us have quirks and and we've devolved into catering to the top heroes. Ordinary humans be damned."

"I think that's just a human problem," laughed Amanda. "God knows I've held myself down when the easier option was available."

Diana sneered. "That's not something to be proud of."

"But Amanda's right," chided Todoroki. "Despite my claims, about stagnation, I think we just need to push ourselves and this requires effort from all sides."

"Yeah! It shouldn't be a zero sum game between technology, quirks and magic." added Deku.

"We're stronger together!" cried Akko.

"Well, I'm just a realist who foresees the monopolies of powerful heroes being a detriment to humanity." bragged Louis.

Bakugou groaned. "For the love of fucking God, YOU are a dumbass with with a lot of power from daddy, so speak for yourself."

"Calm yourself young man." warned Elizabeth.

"Thank you mother," said Louis. "Even if I was a total fool, at least I don't possess the power to end countless lives with the snap of my fingers."

Diana hated herself for taking his side in anything. "I mean, that is an issue with quirks."

Akko resisted the urge to slap her. "What are you on about? I've almost ended the world a ton of times with magic."

"I rest my case." gloated Louis.

Diana ignored him. "Destructive magic takes a long time to learn and requires certain procedures and artifacts. Powerful quirks can be activated at a moments noticed and many of them don't need to be trained to take so many lives."

"I disagree to an extent," muttered Deku, himself capitulating. "But yeah, it's easier to stop you from casting a spell than it is to stop Endeavor setting half the city on fire."

Todoroki spoke up. "But that's the issue. Powerful quirks are being stockpiled by certain families and this is leading to major stratification in society. "

Amanda nodded "Just like how witches and wizards shot themselves in the foot by trying to keep around a few powerful magic families and their boring traditions instead of teaching the art."

Akko slammed her hands on the podium. "Great, we all agree that power corrupts, so how about we solve the issue by letting the quirkless learn magic and give them a chance?"

"And maybe give those with weaker quirks some sort of chance too?" added Deku, although the moment prevented him from naming examples.

Louis sighed. "As if. The return of magic won't be taken seriously by anyone if the pro heroes have an interest in keeping power."

Frank almost elbowed him. "Weren't you listening, there's tons of heroes that would help magic make a return."

"They're not all self centered miscreants you know." reminded Andrew.

Akko smirked. "Yeah, I have the future top hero on my side, what do you think about that?"

Louis laughed. "Bakugou doesn't like you and Todoroki doesn't seem invested in any social movement."

"I'm talking about Deku!" yelled Akko, prompting the heroes to glare at each other.

"That green haired miscreant is supposed to be the one that convinces hero society to look favourably on your people?" snickered Louis. "Why would anyone listen to a boy who is clearly a wreck. I've noticed that he can't even look at you three girls without getting all red."

"DEKU WOULD BE DROWNING IN GIRLFRIENDS IN JAPAN. DROWNING!" screeched Akko.

Deku shakily raised his fingers. "Wh-what?"

"I mean you have a lot of admirers." reminded Todoroki.

Andrew bumped his shoulder on Louis'. "Okay, now you're not even debating magic and quirks, you're just straight up insulting."

"But he has been unfairly treated in this debate," argued Elizabeth. "He's had his honor insulted and has been unfairly ganged up on by every party here."

Akko realized it. "This isn't a debate, this is just an excuse for you and your spawn Louis to make us look bad!"

"For once, I agree with Akko," nodded Diana. "Your questions, your remarks, your demeanor...none of it comes as subtle."

Frank scratched his hair. "Uh, you and Bakugou were taking quite a bit of her bait."

Deku slammed his hands on the podium. "That's because they were so blinded in their hatred of each other that they easily let themselves get manipulated by a divide and conquer strategy of old timey elites!"

"I don't fall for shit like that!" replied Bakugou, who was about to practically murder Deku until Todoroki chimed in.

"Really? Because I think Ms. Elizabeth has never intended to be fair and balanced." he remarked.

"How dare you all accuse my mother!" whined Louis.

Elizabeth scoffed. "I'm operating under BBC regulations thank you."

A voice from the crew called out that caused Elizabeth's skin to jump. "I don't think so Ms. Blackwell."

Elizabeth turned around, facing one of her staffers. "Connolly? What are you interrupting this session for?"

Connolly didn't even glance at her as he looked at a tablet. "Ma'am, you've violated quite a few of our procedures if your emails with your son are anything to go by. It seems you two intended the spectacle of the program to mask your blatant motives."

Elizabeth frowned. "And how would you know that?"

Connolly smirked. "This is your tablet ma'am. My quirk lets me mimic fingerprints, so I decided to tap into your device once it was clear this debate was nothing of the sort."

"Busted asshole!" smirked Bakugou.

Andrew raised an eyebrow. "Well, I think this isn't gonna look well on your future in the BBC once my dad and his fellow governors witness this."

"You're screwed." bluntly remarked Amanda.

Elizabeth looked around at the students sans her son glaring at her, realizing that she ticked off quite a few powerful folks. The media's strategy of letting high emotions and sensationalism for once had failed, and all because the stupidest of the witches had called her out.

Rather than cowering, Elizabeth took a deep breath to save face. "Well, if I'm going to be accused of such foul play, from quirk and magical hooligans no less, then I have no reason to entertain you all further."

Elizabeth mustered her dignity and stormed out of the broadcast room, much to Louis' horror.

Louis face palmed. "Now look what you idiots did!"

"Call out your deception?" stated Andrew.

"More like pave the way to a dystopian nightmare." said Louis as left and chased his mother.

Akko smirked. "Now that he's gone, I think our two blond friends should be able to see how dense they're being!"

Diana laughed. "Dense? Look who's talking."

Bakugou laughed. "I've seen you in class runt! Your dumbass can't call anyone dense like how Deku can't call anyone a wuss."

Deku gulped. He did not like where this was going.

Todoroki and Amanda on the other hand, glanced at each other and knew they found the answer.

Amanda cleared her throat. "Wow, both of you hate certain people at school huh?"

For a moment, Bakugou fell for her trick. "You don't know the crap I have to deal with in UA with all these fucking extras who have no idea on what it means to be a fucking hero!"

"And you don't think I don't with witches?" replied Diana. "I'm dealing with people who call me out just for pointing out flaws in their spells and demeanor even though...oh I don't know...magic is serious and you can get your foolish self killed if you mess things up!"

Bakugou chuckled. "Really? Cause I get chewed the fuck out if I tell people straight why they're being a bunch of dumbasses or if I go all out against them in a fight."

"Huh," smirked Diana. "Well, what do they think is going to happen in the battlefield? Those brute villains playing nice?"

"Exactly!" agreed Bakugou. "They don't get that being a hero makes you a target with people out for your fucking ass!"

"And our magical world is full of perils and horrors that have claimed so many lives and yet half my class thinks it's nothing but childish whimsical adventures," added Diana. "They think having magic alone renders them immune to reality, but even Luna Nova's finest alumni had their tragic wake up calls."

"Yeah, your profs' war flashbacks made that clear as hell," laughed Bakugou. "No offense to them, but their comrades were acting like dumbasses if their rants were anything to go by."

"None taken, because although tragic, I'm disgusted at how lightly people take being a witch or wizard because it leads to such needless losses," replied Diana. "So if my classmates want to complain about me trying to be a little too perfect, well, they can go look at some obituaries."

"And you shouldn't apologize for that!" encouraged Bakugou. "Always trying to be number one? That's the fucking spirit and it's nice to know SOMEBODY gets that weakness has to be crushed and never tolerated!"

Diana giggled. Quite girlishly in fact. Bakugou almost blushed in response.

Diana took a deep breath and her look turned sour. "Still, I wish the magical world thought that way because they've been so forgiving of ineptitude!"

Bakugou rolled his eyes. "Tell me about it, because superheroes in this post All Might world are all flashy jackasses with no substance! I didn't think it was that bad until fucking Deku got into UA and we're supposed to be the top hero school!"

Deku slowly raised a finger. "Wh-what?"

Todoroki instinctively placed a hand on Deku's mouth and hand. "Quiet, we're finally getting through to them."

Diana eyes widened meanwhile as she continued with Bakugou. "Really? Because I feel we did a disservice when we admitted Akko into our top magical academy!"

Akko blinked slowly, her mouth trembling.

Amanda tapped Akko's shoulder. "Hey, suck it up. This journey's almost through."

Bakugou all the while was cackling. "See, I still think it was smart for Luna Nova to admit non magic quirkless students, but why the fuck did they choose a dumbass?"

"I have no clue honestly," shrugged Diana. "But I do feel my skepticism about non magical family students would have diminished if Akko wasn't such a blight at Luna Nova."

"Maybe it's rigged because Deku was supposedly quirkless, he shows up a quirk like All Might's and get's fucking in even though he almost killed himself!" complained Bakugou.

Diana gave it a thought. "That's absurd. I don't know what Akko did, but I find it strange that she of all non magic folk was the first into our academy."

"And I'm guessing they still pander to her?" checked Bakugou.

"Do they ever! She should have been expelled multiple times, but for some God forsaken reason they insist on keeping her in." complained Diana.

"Ugh, academia is in deep shit," shook Bakugou. "Deku's a squirt, but for some reason our class thinks he's gonna be one of the best. I swear, they rigged the entrance exams just for him and now all he does is cry and break his bones."

"And all Akko does is a make a mockery of our fine art with her crazy ideas," sighed Diana. "I mean, I guess magic should make itself more presentable after all, but that doesn't mean we need to degrade it like she does!"

Tears in his eyes, Deku tried to lash out at Bakugou, only for Todoroki to quickly hold him back. The enraged Akko tried to do the same with Diana, but Amanda managed to keep her restrained. Not taking any risks, Frank and Andrew also darted over to Todoroki help him tie down Deku in case he used his quirk.

All the while, Bakugou and Diana went on like their targets weren't even around.

"And you know what worst part is about Deku, and what I think applies to all those other runts?" remarked Bakugou.

"What?" checked Diana.

"That you get this feeling that they're the dumbasses who are fated to save the world." told Bakugou.

Diana gasped. "Yes! I feel the same about Akko. For some reason she's the one who has been going through all the adventures with her two blasted friends and pulling off all sorts of heroic actions even though she's the reason why the world needs saving!"

"Hah, well Deku's isn't a total dumbass, but all he does is get himself broken physically and mentally after each fight. And he has the favor of fucking All Might even though the two can't compare."

"Unfortunate," muttered Diana, still having guessed the truth about Deku's quirk. "And the funny part about Akko is that while I don't think she's been around Shiny Chariot, she has the ability to use the Shiny Rod just like her! The most powerful wand that exists and it chose her of all people to wield it!"

Bakugou, Deku and Todoroki thankfully restrained themselves from blurting out the truth in their heated moment.

Bakugou continued on. "It's ridiculous. Academia is letting mediocre freaks be in charge of shit's that's supposed to life threatening and dangerous to the world, while looking down on the people like you and me that actually put some effort into being the best!"

"They can live in their naive world," shrugged Diana while laughing. "But you seem to know how dangerous it really is and what it takes to be top hero."

"And from what I hear from ya, I know you'll be top witch! Fools be damned!" chuckled Bakugou.

And in that moment, the two stopped laughing and looked into each other eyes, an awkward pause between them once they realized the extent of their conversation.

Andrew broke the silence. "Well, I think we've finally come to a compromise with you two!"

Diana and Bakugou's eyes widened, glanced at each other and darted away.

Amanda laughed. "Yeah! You two are great together when talking about how much better you think you are than everyone else."

Akko shook her head. "This is not how I wanted harmony between magic and quirks, but if this is the price I have to price pay for my dream...well…fine."

Deku's eyes twitched. "Right, if global public humiliation is what will get you two to be nicer to each other then I guess

Amanda stomped her foot down. "And can we just end this silly feud already! It's getting on my nerves and there's no reason for us to hate each other unless you wanna keep acting like children!"

Bakugou and Diana each took a deep breath. Inadvertently, they had finally seen how much they had in common with each other. Even if they came from seperate worlds, they saw their own the same way. Their arrogance had driven a wedge between each them, but now it was the glue that would make them one.

Diana stood prim and tall. "I'm ready to move on if you are."

Bakugou nodded. "I was ready already."

"I guess there's only one thing left to do," smirked Andrew, who faced Frank. "So buddy, will you do the honors?"

"Of course man!" smiled Frank. "Bakugou and Diana, I think it's time to seal the deal with a shake."

Bakugou and Diana slowly, but firmly, extended their arms and shook each other's hand. Their eyes were locked in a gaze like two adversaries making sure the other wouldn't strike, but there was also the newfound feeling of underlying respect.

"Now hug!" exclaimed Frank.

Their eyes shot open and their shake went limp. The two of them blushed heavily and now struggled to look each other in the eye, rendered speechless by the suggestion.

"Come on guys!" teased Amanda. "It's not official until you two hug."

Bakugou and Diana let each other's hand go and darted their faces to the other side, breathing heavily.

"Oh don't be like that!" reprimanded Akko.

"Yeah, you guys are this close!" added Deku.

Andrew's grin wider and he began clapping his hands. "Come on! Hug! Hug! Hug!"

Everyone began chanting and clapping "Hug! Hug! Hug!", even Todoroki who was trying his best not to laugh.

Finally, Bakugou and Diana looked at each other once more and quickly wrapped their arms around each other, prompting their friends to start cheering and applauding.

"Yay!" cheered Akko, happy she got the two biggest sceptics to reconcile.

The two held each other close, finding their hug to be more enjoyable than they'd thought. Bakugou felt that Diana's grip was stronger than it should have, wondering if she took his advice to work a little more. Regardless, there was something captivating about holding her that warmed him on the inside. Diana likewise suddenly found herself appreciating Bakugou's physique a little more, embracing his tight grip as well.

Still hugging her, Bakugou finally spoke up. "Alright, if I've been a total dumbass, then I'm sorry you and everyone else had to see that."

Deku was freaking out. "Bakugou never apologizes like that!"

Todoroki took a sigh of relief. "Embrace it, because this might be a once in a lifetime event."

Diana ignored their remarks. "I too admit that I've been a little brazen and uncouth."

"That's a fancy way of putting it, but thanks." replied Bakugou.

"You two really like hugging each other don't you?" piped up Amanda.

Bakugou and Diana realized that they were still embracing each other and quickly let go. Their faces were sheepish and shy, uncharacteristic for both of them, but their newfound appreciation for each other was something both would need getting used to, even if they were clearly eager to go on with good terms.

"I'm so happy for you two!" cheered Frank, as he and the rest of the group broke into applause, prompting Diana to tug on her skirt and give an elegant bow while Bakugou did so smugly.

"And I suppose we can end this chapter once and for all?" added Andrew.

The heroes and witches glanced at each other, and gave their nods and statements of agreement. They were glad to have gotten over the topic on their first week together, because now they could spend the rest of the month getting to know each other as friends without any hostile tensions between them. A certain awkwardness still lingered however but they could deal with that later.

Just as everyone was trying to take in the whole situation. Connolly walked on over to the group, staring at a computer tablet and checking things off. "Well, I guess that's one way to end the show."

Deku and Akko looked at each other and the former sighed. "With total embarrassment in front of a global audience?"

Akko tried to look on the bright side. "Hey, at least we got the world to see that even the angriest witch and hero can still get along right? They'll be talking about this for years. This is the moment I needed to bring magic back into the world!"

"Oh yeah, no one actually saw this," informed Connolly before Akko could go further. "Our viewers tuned out before Elizabeth could give introductions to see some breaking news."

Everyone' mouths dropped. Deku and Akko took a deep breath, at least relieved that no one saw Bakugou's and Diana's rants against them, saving the two from global embarrassment. At least until some bloke found a recording and uploaded it online.

Andrew goraned. "Are you being facetious? There's no way this went unnoticed."

Frank placed an arm on Andrew's shoulder. "Relax, he probably just means it was a couple thousand households."

Connolly shook his head. "Yeah not even that.""

Bakugou slammed his foot. "Not even one fucking person saw this?"

"Actually...one household did seem to have remained tuned in. From Japan of all places." muttered Connolly.

Connolly glanced at the three hero students. "Your friends from home?"

"Certainly." agreed Todoroki.

Deku tried to encourage Akko, knowing how much she looked forward to this day. "Well, that's something right?"

Akko smiled. "Yeah, I guess it is."

Before anyone else could comment, Louis burst through the doors of the studio room.

He pointed to one of the perched tv monitors as he approached the group. "I saw the ending on those wall screen things! Wow, now magical and quirk people are the basis for the future and heaven knows how much this is gonna ruin humanity! I bet my father is calling up those merc companies for his deluded dream of a combined arms hero and witch or wizard fighting force. And he was THIS close from going back to being his hateful self and dismissing his cursed dream!"

"No one saw it." interrupted Todoroki.

"What?" spat Louis.

Amanda snickered. "Yeah, we got interrupted by some 'breaking news', so don't worry, daddy isn't gonna start his private army."

Louis calmed down. "Well...okay. What I said about heroes and witches or whatever back then was still my word, but I could care less if you fools get along. Just keep it out of the public."

Akko laughed haughtily. "Ha! Well now that I've reached through these three for real, there's nothing stopping magic from making a comeback!"

Diana piped up before Louis had a chance to respond. "What was that breaking news about anyway?"

Connolly bit his lip. "Had to do with that All Might fella funny enough."

The heroes and Frank gasped loudly. Given the state he was in, breaking news about All Might couldn't have been good.

Deku tried to get ahold of himself. "What happened to him!"

Connolly was nonchalant. "Yeah, it turns out he's not part American like the world thought he was, but part Canadian so the United States is revoking his citizenship. So much for Japanese-American fusion eh?"

Everyone was frozen in shock, not from the severity of the news, but rather from the lack of it. It was relieving to know nothing truly bad had happened to him, however.

Deku meanwhile shot up in tears once more. "NOOOOOOOOOO! His identity was tied to the American Empire! What are we gonna make of smashes named after states! And the United States of Smash was…"

_POW!_

Bakugou slapped Deku shutting him up.

"I'm sure he'll be okay." inferred Todoroki.

Akko took Deku's hand as she comforted him from the revelation, all the while glaring at Bakugou. "Could you stop being mean to him! Jeez."

Diana groaned. "Akko, do you really want to hear him whine and rant for an hour? Bakugou did us a favor."

As the two sides faced each other, Amanda whispered to Todoroki. "Talk about tables turning."

Todoroki took a deep breath and shook his head. "It's a marginal improvement."

Louis stood tall and prepared to leave. "You folks can do what you want. I on the other hand have been invited to Glasgow for some very important business."

Andrew and Frank smirked at each other and grabbed Louis' shoulders.

"Whatever it is pal, we're coming with you!" fake smiled Frank.

"Yeah, if it's important then I'm sure the son of a governor should attend right?" teased Andrew.

Louis began stammering. "What the heck? Let go of me!"

Andrew shook his head. "It pains me to say this, but we can't trust you to represent our academy without supervision."

Andrew faced Akko. "We'll, I guess I'll be on my way."

Akko nodded and hugged him. "Right, we'll just be in Oxford for the rest of the day. We'll see you back at town soon right"

"Of course." assured Andrew. He then glanced at Deku, who he could tell was having his heart strings twisted in two by the sight of him hugging Akko. It didn't take a genius to figure out he largely felt the same way about Akko as he did. Perhaps even more.

Still, Andrew didn't see him as a threat. Akko's happiness came first.

Instead, Andrew extended a hand, which Deku quickly shook. "Thanks for putting up with everything. You take good care of her now since we both know what kind of trouble she gets into."

Akko gave a cute pout, while Deku's fears melted away as he returned Andrew's friendliness. The next the heroes and witches knew, Andrew and Frank escorted Louis out of the studio, clearly not willing to let him out of sight.

A deep voice suddenly called out. "Glad he's out of here eh?"

The cohorts turned to face three individuals in business suits. The man who just spoke sported facial hair and a build that made him look gruffer than he should have. The taller woman had slicked back blond hair that matched her more inquisitive look, while the shorter one scratched her short silver hair while sipping on her coffee with a bored expression.

"And you three chucklefucks are?" asked Bakugou.

The man tried to extend his hand that no one shook. "Oh, name's Oswald, I'm the CEO of White Wolves enterprises. I specialize in putting together teams of powerful quirk users and even some magic folk alongside some other gimmicks."

"Cynthia, CEO of Global Heaven and we would just like to focus on putting powerful people together rather than branch out into more questionable ventures." she explained while glaring at Oswald for reasons unknown to the students.

"Norah, I'm in charge of Warriors without Borders and you can guess what we are." Norah muttered.

"So you're the guys Louis' dad was looking to hire." checked Amanda.

"And have a panel due soon?" added Diana.

The CEOs nodded. In the midst of everything, everyone had forgotten that the leaders of the private quirk military firms were due for their own panel right after them.

"Basically hero agencies, but not centered around heroes?" checked Todoroki.

"Generally." nodded Norah.

"Basically if superheroes decided to act like soldiers and same with the few wizards and witches we've gotten on board." added Cynthia.

Deku squinted. "Don't think that would be allowed in Japan with the quirk regulations."

Oswald smiled. "It ain't kid, but Mr. Blackwell seems fond of the idea and we're the test run."

"Because he wants his private army right?" snarked Amanda.

Cynthia crossed her arms and glared at Amanda. "Trust us, we want to see magic and quirks live in harmony too and we've seen GREAT progress in the synergy in our units. Instead of outdated military doctrine and the traditions set by hero and magical society. Our more practical method has seen good results in our operations abroad."

Akko's face was disgusted. "Like I'm sorry but such a….corporate method is not how I wanted this unity to happen."

Deku bit finger. "I know right. I mean, is this really it? Is this how we're gonna push the union between the worlds of magic and quirks in the modern world? Via profit and private militarism? I mean I know the history of civil rights has involved cynical reasons for progress where diversity and tolerance become popular because it's profitable or it means more manpower for the global empires. Is the bigotry and exploitation of our neoliberal world any less real just because the forces controlling it are diverse or are we.."

_SMACK!_

"Shut up Marx." muttered Bakugou.

Akko hugged Deku close while yelling at Bakugou. "Come see the violence inherent in the system everyone!"

Amanda took Todoroki's hand, causing him to turn as red as Deku was, and put her and himself in between their friends. "New rule, when you guys feel like arguing, me and him are gonna do all we can to keep you apart so we don't go back on our little progress."

Oswald shrugged. "Well, we have a little show to run and we'll try to...salvage your situation."

Cynthia and her compatriots handed out business cards. "Yeah and if you guys ever need some backup in Japan or wherever, give our companies a call. We'll change some minds."

Norah nodded. "That would be a great boost."

Todoroki snatched the cards. "No promises."

"You'll change your mind." laughed Oswald.

Soon, all that was left were the three young heroes and three witches. No more outside parties.

Todoroki took a deep breath, noting it was still early in the day. "So, what now?"

Amanda smiled. "Our train back isn't due till late at night so we can spend all day in Oxford! I think there's even a fair or festival we can catch!"

Todoroki noticed Amanda's smile when she mentioned the fair and compiled. "Sounds like a good idea. I'm in."

Akko gasped. "Oh my gosh! The university's fair is still happening this weekend! Maybe I'll have the chance to perform something or watch some witches and wizards do something cool."

Akko then grabbed Deku's hands. "And there's so many things I wanna show you Deku! I know you'll love every bit of it!"

Deku gulped as his fingers trembled. "Heh...can't wait!"

"Yay!" beamed Akko.

Now all that was left were for the two former rivals to make their decision.

Her face neutral, but voice still friendly, Diana voiced her opinion. "I think it would be a crime not to show my friends around Oxford."

Bakugou chuckled. "Friends eh? Yeah...I'm down."

Bakugou and Diana shared their moment, their friends giving some silent mental applause at the bout of great progress, and signs of something more developing between them.

"But seriously!" blurted Deku, thinking about the CEOs. "This can't be how it all ends. Another civil rights movement hijacked by aspiring corporate oligarchs for their own profitable ends to…"

"ENOUGH!" interrupted Bakugou, getting Deku to zip it.

Todoroki piped up. "He's right you know."

"Fuck off icy hot." sneered Bakugou, who almost flinched once he noticed the witches laughing at him, but decided to grin at the absurdity instead.

Bakugou swore Todoroki and Deku were grinning with him. He also wondered if he was sharing their feelings for the witches too.


	13. Totally Not A Date

"Alright you shits," narrated Bakugou. "You've encountered a group of Chaos Space Paladins and their devotion to the Blood God means you can't pull any mushy shit to get out of a fight."

"Not even with a high speech roll?" frowned Deku. Although playing a space monk with low charisma, it was clear he was trying to give Akko's space bard character ideas.

"Quit being a pussy and roll initiative." commanded Bakugou as he readied his own dice.

Todoroki raised an eyebrow. "I still don't think it's fair that you get to have a character and be game master."

Diana came to Bakugou's defense. "He paid for most of the session, so I suppose it's fair."

Akko thought otherwise. "Come on, he just did that so he can make his own character look good!"

"ROLL!" roared Bakugou.

"I'm regretting taking part in this nerd game." sighed Amanda as she rolled the dice.

Bakugou looked at everyone's scores. Sadly his space warlock wasn't going first. "Akko, your stupid bard is up."

"Yay!" exclaimed Akko as she looked through her bard's spells, having modelled her character after a futuristic version of Shiny Chariot.

"I would recommend trying to do something that stuns them." advised Diana, as she looked through her own space wizard's spell sheet.

Todoroki spoke up. "My character goes after you, so you should give my space sorcerer a blessing that lets me attack twice. I could use my fire and ice beam to figure out what they're weak against."

"Of course you would." giggled Amanda.

Todoroki took a deep breath. He knew that Amanda was particularly perceptive to any puns involving the nature of his quirk. While he was never one for funny business, it was always worth seeing her cute laugh.

"I know!" decided Akko. "I'll do a magical performance that leaves them all stunned with my beauty while you guys beat them while they're vulnerable!"

"Great plan!" encouraged Deku.

"Roll your magic dice." ordered Bakugou.

Akko complied. "Yay! I got a 100!"

"Awesome!" cheered Deku.

"Now roll it again." said Bakugou, biting his lip.

"Huh?" muttered a confused Akko.

Bakugou went into narrator mode. "By getting a fucking hundred, you feel a surge of powerful energy from amassing all that magic, so we need to see where your shit leads us. Or you could choose to do nothing and let that magic flow out of you."

"As if!" Akko rolled again and smirked. "100 again!"

Bakugou bit his lip and began packing up. "Yeah we're fucked. The end."

Everyone's mouths dropped.

Amanda spoke first. "What? I didn't even get to turn into one animal!" Getting in touch with her Irish culture via playing a space druid was the only thing that motivated her to play.

"Doesn't matter." shook Bakugou. "By Akko rolling a hundred twice in a row, the raw magic was too much for her pathetic level 1 character, which caused her to fucking explode, and unleash an army of level 10 demons from hell that none of us have any chance of fighting. So we're done."

"Space demons?" cried Akko. "You're lying just so you can kill off our characters!"

"I'm not lying!" yelled Bakugou as he shoved the lore book in Akko's face. "In the grim darkness of the far future, magic is a force tied to chaos and demons. The more powerful your magic, the more likely you're fucked by satan!"

"Such a stereotype," shook Diana. "Witches and wizards are forbidden from making pacts with hell because selling your soul could result in situations exactly like this."

Bakugou shrugged. "Yeah, I think it's fucked how the setting actually punishes magical characters if they get stronger."

"Well, this was a bust." muttered Todoroki.

"Nice job Akko," snickered Amanda. "Even in game all you do is summon demons."

"Yeah yeah yeah." blurted Akko as she looked away. It was quite embarrassing given that her little portal to hell was responsible for all the events that transpired this week.

Deku bit his lip and tried to encourage Akko. "Don't worry, I'm sure in a less cynical setting, your character would have instantly won us the battle instead of getting us all ripped apart."

Akko's smile returned. "You mean it?"

"Of course!" nodded Deku.

Bakugou meanwhile handed the game supplies back to the store's owner, whose name tag read Duncan Rhodes.

"Is there a problem with the game mate?" asked Duncan.

"No, we got turned into fucking space demon chow on round one." said Bakugou.

Duncan frowned. "Magical perils eh? That never happened in this store once on round one."

Diana glared at Akko, and then glanced more innocently at Bakugou. "Regardless, it was nice of you to pay for the session."

"Yeah, don't mention it." remarked Bakugou and he meant it literally as he intended his moments of generosity to be few.

"It did look like an intriguing game though," noted Diana. "Maybe with less troublesome party members we could return and do a one on one session?"

Bakugou was surprised. "Sure. We can do that. Just you and me. No runts."

Bakugou noticed Duncan shooting him an encouraging look based on his interpretation of Diana's proposal. He ignored him and headed to the exit with Diana to link up with their friends.

Amanda stretched. "So, our plan for the next two hours is gone. Now what do we do?"

After heading out of the BBC's broadcast room, the group tried to find ways to bide their time until the festival's opening hours. Deku suggested the nearby board game cafe, but Bakugou's plans for a power trip disguised as an RPG session were cut short thanks to Akko's bad luck.

Diana gave it a moment of thought. "The university fair doesn't open for a while, so how about we see the River Thames?"

"Oh yeah!" nodded Akko. "I bet it looks great at this time."

"Scenery ought to be nice, so what do you say boys?" checked Amanda.

The heroes looked at each other and gave their varying nods and grunts of agreement.

Regardless, Akko was ecstatic to spend time with them. "Yay! Let's go!"

Diana lead, and her friends followed.

Other than the idyllic scene of Oxford being interrupted by oddly heavily armed soldiers manning checkpoints, the journey itself was rather quiet. Although they had agreed on a declaration of friendship earlier, being social with each other was another feat. At Luna Nova there were at least lessons and reflections about performance to talk about, but this weekend presented another challenge. No work or errands to run, just a normal outing.

It was evident to the girls that the boys hadn't done this sort of thing regularly. As far as the heroes knew, they spent most of their time studying and training, not really hanging around a town. That wasn't even getting to Bakugou's and Todoroki's own personalities isolating themselves from casual excursions with their UA classmates. Even Diana was guilty of avoiding such outings, and her previous attempts to get the witch hunt parade banned worsened her 'no fun allowed' reputation at Luna Nova.

The six were finally closing in on the river, everything still quiet. Maybe it was because they were still reflecting on the debate a brief while back or because of certain feelings building up, but people were hesitant to speak a word.

The next thing Bakugou knew, Diana began humming again. There wasn't a specific song, but her tune and melody were compelling. Although the others paid her no mind, Bakugou was entirely focused on it. He didn't know why he was drawn to the humming, but he felt a part of his chest tense up a bit as he listened, a specific feeling he never felt before.

Diana's humming got slightly louder, making him certain that she knew he was listening. She was perceptive like that.

Of course, Akko broke the silence as she pointed to a snack bar. "Hey! Let's get something eat!"

Bakugou wanted to chew her out for ruining the moment, but he begrudgingly decided to shut it and go for food.

After one brief fight with Todoroki over him insisting on paying for everyone again, the group sat on a table with a great view of the river. Of course, the heroes sat on one side facing the witches and vice versa, and they found it hard to look at the river itself instead of each other.

Not wanting the silence to return, Deku made conversation by pointing to a wanted poster perched on the snack bar's wall, for the so-called Rotha Mosley. "Hey, isn't that the drawing of the villain who is on the loose?"

"That's exactly it." Todoroki recalled the picture of the so called maniac that the SAS showed them in Blytonburry.

"Sounds fucked that all they have is that stupid sketch and a name," muttered Bakugou. "Ex-SAS ghost or not, what kind of shit work is that?"

"Makes me wonder what else is going on." admitted Amanda.

"That's none of our business everyone," reminded Diana. "I know you three are heroes in training, but I don't think you have permission to act in Britain."

"It'll blow over," noted Akko. "Maybe those private army companies are gonna solve it once someone pays them enough."

"Cynical, but I guess it's reality." shrugged Amanda.

Bakugou nodded. "Well, I haven't seen a single fucking hero around here, but if your special forces guys have quirks I guess we're not entirely fucked."

"And a lot of them are wizards! And some witches too." reminded Akko.

"Like quite a few of our teachers were?" brought up Amanda.

"Why aren't their exploits more common knowledge though?" wondered Deku.

"Because it would all be classified information." answered Diana. "What went on in the special forces is something we have no business knowing, though our teachers appear to have lost their ability to keep state secrets due to stress."

"Well, it would bring magic's role in the modern world in a whole new light." said Todoroki.

"Actually gives me more fucking respect for magic." admitted Bakugou, rather quietly and quickly to not give any false impressions, but a smile of thanks from Diana made it worth it.

As the group ate, an unexpected guest hopped on the benches the witches were sitting on.

A cat. A white cat that had a rather majestic and fluffy coat. It sat next to Diana, looking rather proud and clearly eyeing the trays with their food on it.

Bakugou and Todoroki would have normally attempted to shoo it away, a brief flash of their quirks being enough to scare it, but the reactions of the witches made them do otherwise.

"Aw, look who joined us." smiled Amanda.

"Oh, I have a cat back home! But black." remarked Akko as she fondly looked at the cat.

Not even startled, Diana began stroking the fur of the cat, causing it to close its eyes in bliss. "This should get it to stay put."

The heroes didn't know what exactly came over them when they saw Diana petting the cat, but they were a little mesmerized. Seeing a girl being affectionate over a cute little animal was a sight they wished to cherish.

Deku tried to raise his voice, impressed by how masterfully Diana's cat handling skills were. "Uh, is it true that witches like to have cats?"

Diana eyed him and answered. "Hm, there wasn't anything that connected witches to cats other than some sort of cultural hysteria that originated in the west, but they can be good pets and trained to be familiars."

Amanda continued. "Basically everyone kept yelling that witches have cats, so a bunch of witches actually went out to get cats. I personally like foxes though."

"I'm more of a mousey or bunny girl myself." admitted Akko.

The heroes gave their quick "uh-hus" again as the continued to stare at Diana joyously petting the cat, that suddenly gave soft "meow", which prompted Diana to slightly giggle.

And then, then heroes tugged their chests at the sight before them.

"What's wrong?" gulped Akko.

"Food bad?" checked Amanda.

Bakugou gritted his teeth. "What? No. I don't know what the fuck happened!"

Todoroki gave an honest answer. "Sorry, it's just that the scene of you petting the cat Diana was rather wholesome."

Diana raised an eyebrow, pondering what she just heard. "I...see…"

Deku nervously laughed and spoke quickly. "I mean you know, I guess we're really attracted to the scene of girls being cute with animals and all so…" He then quickly placed his hands on his mouth hoping the witches didn't understand him.

Akko and Amanda however, were too busy shooting a not so subtle jealous look at Diana, who glared at both them like she was waiting for an insult.

Just then, the cat finally hopped away and moved onto the next bench to harass the people eating there once it was clear that Diana wasn't going to feed it anytime soon.

Todoroki wiped his mouth and got everyone's attention. "I think it's time we actually start walking along the river."

"Agreed." complied Amanda as she and the rest of the group gathered their trash and began their trek along the Thames.

This time, the journey wasn't entirely quiet since there was the sound of birds and critters all around. There was however, little dialogue between the apparent friends.

Bakugou all the while was trying to work out whatever the hell was going on inside of him. He normally would have refused outings like this, as would Todoroki. Even though his attitudes towards both Deku and Todoroki were largely unchanged, he couldn't figure out why he was agreeing to spend time alongside them besides being obligated to my the conditions of his stay at Luna Nova.

He thought it had to do with the witches, who the heroes let walk ahead of them, unconsciously on purpose.

There was just something about the view of the witches walking alongside the path that was getting to the heroes. They looked stunning walking between the bright blue river and the glowing green trees, the shining sun illuminating and bringing the beauty out of everything, them and the nature they walked through. The cool breeze that lightly blew on their hair and clothes as well as the view of the old timey houses in the distance gave the boys another feeling they were in the middle of a fairy tale. A fairy tale about beautiful witches whose magic gave joy to anyone who crossed their path.

Deku was already a little weak regarding girls, but for Todoroki and Bakugou, the tranquil scene was just something they didn't know they craved deep down. It was like seeking Shiny Chariot perform as kids. The sheer contrast between the world they were used to and the one of the witches appealed to them, rather than drove them away.

Once again sensing where the boys were really looking at, the girls decided to stop and face the river, and the former did the same once they caught up. At this point, the witches were not thinking too hard about it, rationalizing it as curiosity on the heroes' part and nothing more. Deep down, they were itching on the truth.

Deku lightly spoke up. "Uh, it's really peaceful huh?"

"Right?" nodded Akko, stepping closer to him. "Can't see this back home."

"Yeah," agreed Deku, still trying to string words together. "Do you ever miss Japan?"

"Sorta, but my goal to make magic loved again means I gotta stay in the last place where it's relevant you know? I had my old friends, but not that many since I grew up quirkless." explained Akko.

"I know that feeling." Deku glanced at Bakugou, who returned the gesture. Bakugou and the rest of Japanese society had written off Deku due to him being quirkless, given that his home country was centered on quirks like no other.

Yet, the two of them were side by side next to a bunch of witches who he was hostile towards just a few hours ago. And at least now Bakugou's antagonism was rooted in seeing Deku as a legitimate threat, and his desire to make well with the witches seemed genuine.

Amanda tapped the boys on the shoulders. "So Akko wants to bring magic back, but you three want to be the number one hero right?"

"Fuck yeah!" smirked Bakugou. "I'll be the reason villains are afraid to get up in the morning."

"And most normal people." chided Todoroki.

Bakugou was about to strike until Diana tugged his arm. "Can we keep it peaceful here?"

Flustered and red faced, Bakugou quickly stood down. "Alright, but I think we know who is going to be number one around here."

Akko countered. "Oh please, a hero should be a symbol of peace and you're anything but."

Diana shook her head. "I don't think being a symbol of peace is viable in world plagued with villains everyday. Some sacrifices have to be made."

"Calm down big brother." Amanda tapped Todoroki's shoulders. "And your take?"

Todoroki took a deep breath. "I just want to be a hero that lets people feel safe. Don't exactly wanna look like my dad."

"Can't blame you." consoled Diana.

"But what about you three, don't you wanna be the greatest witch or some shit?" inquired Bakugou.

Diana grinned. "It would be nice to go in history to inspire future generations."

Amanda placed a finger on her chin. "I'm gonna be real, that isn't what I've really had in mind. I do want to be a good witch, but I just don't feel like it's worth the effort." She paused for a second. "I think I want pursue something with broom flying. The best in that field? I'm in."

Akko laughed. "Come on, even I know that's impossible for me."

Deku's eyes widened. "Don't say that! I know you can do it."

Diana laughed. "Well, I guess I have no rivals after all."

Bakugou joined her. "Eh, it's not like you had any real fucking competition."

"Still!" interrupted Akko. "I do want to be the best witch I can be because how else am I gonna figure out how to make people like magic again. I know I'm not as good as casting spells as Diana or riding a broom as Amanda, but I just want to keep trying and if not, maybe I can inspire someone else to take the mantle I guess."

"That's a great ideal. And I know it's you who is gonna make the world realize what it's been missing!" encouraged Deku. "You're full of passion and life. I know you can put smiles on peoples' faces like All Might or Shiny Chariot."

Amanda piped up. "And the Shiny Rod chose her which is a pretty big help."

Diana crossed her arms, still ticked about that fact.

Akko's face turned red as she speaked. "So yeah, making magic loved is all I want to do. And..well...you gotta have someone to carry out your ideals so maybe having a kid would be nice. It doesn't matter if he's born with magic or a quirk, as long as he makes people happy."

Deku's mouth dropped. The subject was not something he entertained. Maybe it was because Akko was a year older than him, but no one from UA talked about that part of their life yet.

Diana actually nodded. "Ah yes, legacies. I'll be damned if the true Cavendish bloodline dies with me, and a future Cavendish surpassing me can only do good, so I think raising a nice boy will be in order."

Bakugou almost twitched. It sounded like Diana wanted a wizard for a kid, which he knew was only a half chance if Diana married a hero. And then he questioned why he was even thinking about this and stopped pondering the topic. He refused to accept that he cared about Diana in that way.

And then his heart jumped when he noticed Diana looking warmly at him.

Meanwhile, Akko clapped her hands with a starry look in her eyes. "Yeah! I actually wouldn't mind if I had a girl, but Deku! You were so cute when you got turned into a kid so I just knew I wanted a boy as cuddly as you were!"

The statement left Deku unable to talk, prompting Todoroki to slap him on the back of the head. As if he wasn't as red as his scar already, Amanda whispered in his ear.

"I don't really care for kids at this moment, but I wouldn't make a bad mom right?" said Amanda quietly.

Todoroki bit his lip. Given his upbringing, it was a tricky subject, but he wanted to see Amanda happy. "Don't care much for kids myself right now, but I vouch that you would at least do better than my dad."

Amanda snickered and smiled, and Todoroki grinned in response.

Bakugou placed his hand in his pockets and immediately began walking. "Okay, I've had enough. Are you fuckers gonna see this stupid river with me or not?"

The witches laughed, this time because Bakugou's reaction was pretty typical of boys his age given what they had just discussed. Todoroki and Deku were pretty flustered themselves, but continued their journey.

For the next hour or so, the group paced around the Thames, with Diana bringing up whatever commentary she knew about the region in order to prevent anymore awkward discussions from arising. Luckily no one appeared to have remembered what had been discussed halfway through.

Soon enough, it was time to head back to the main town and into Oxford University for the local fair that was being hosted. It was certainly a different scene when they all returned.

The streets were getting crowded as they all progressed to the fair. Most people around them were college students, some of them clearly drunk.

A number of heavily armed guards were also present in the area. Similar to the ones manning checkpoints as if they expected the villain Rotha to show up.

For once, the heroes could also clearly make out several people with obvious quirks rather than subtle ones, although even the mutant ones didn't deviate all that much from the standard human appearance.

Nearing them were a couple drunk off their ass college students, whose quirks were flashing as they walked around wildly, yelling incomprehensible slang.

The witches paid them no mind, but the next they knew, the heroes side stepped like they were forming a barrier between them and the drunkards. It wasn't too obvious to other observers, but the boys even slightly extended their arms to discourage the miscreants from approaching them while also slightly steering the witches away.

None of the witches commented, chalking it up to either a hero or boyish thing. They didn't need protection given all the experience they had with worse threats, but they found the display both endearing and humorous as long as it wasn't overbearing.

The fair itself was rather livid. Children and their parents walked to various games, while the college students downed as much booze as they could.

Ever orderly, Diana pointed to a directory and tried to steer everyone in that direction. Deku himself was already trying to make an efficient festival plan that nobody was going to follow anyway.

Amanda's eye meanwhile caught something, and she suddenly began walking to one of the fair's games. "Oh just a sec, I wanna try out this thing."

The game Amanda wanted to play was a simple ring toss. She approached the jovial owner, who greeted her with a smile.

"Welcome! To Jaruzelski's rings of fortune!" smiled Jaruzelski. "Think you have what it takes to win one of my fabulous prizes?"

"I know I do." bragged Amanda, who paid the fee to play the game.

"Excellent! All you have to do is throw the ring around the pole and claim what's yours." instructed Jaruzelski as he readied the rings for Amanda to throw.

"Good luck." encouraged Todoroki.

"Don't need it." laughed Amanda, which made Todoroki regret his words.

Amanda tossed the ring and sure enough, it looped and landed right around the pole. She practically did it with no effort.

"Impressive. First try too." complimented Diana while Deku gave Amanda some applause.

"See what I mean Todoroki?" smirked Amanda, as she brought his face closer to his just to score his flustered reaction.

"I fully understand." Todoroki tried to maintain his neutral expression, but noticed a trail of sweat.

Jaruzelski then pointed to his prizes. "Pick anything you want madam!"

"No need, I was just in it for the game." smirked Amanda.

"But you're always about getting your hands on prizes." snarked Diana.

Amanda paid her no mind and was about to drag the group to the next game she wanted to play until everyone noticed Akko. Clasping her hands, she was staring at the prizes with a dreamy and awestruck expression, stars one again in her eyes.

"Are you okay?" checked Deku.

"Is there a Shiny Chariot prize?" checked Bakugou.

"Oh my gosh! Scorbunny!" cheered Akko, jumping up and down.

The group glanced at a white and orange anime bunny plushie. They recognized it as a mascot from a popular game franchise they enjoyed as kids.

"I have to get it!" squealed Akko as she got out her money to pay for a game.

Jaruzelski laughed at her enthusiasm as he handed her the rings. "Well then, just do as before. Throw the ring around the pole and claim that Scorbunny."

Akko snatched one of the rings, aimed, and tossed it.

"OWWW!" yelled Jaruzelski as the ring struck him right in the forehead. "Wh...what the hell is wrong with you!"

Diana's mouth dropped. "Akko, how did you….he wasn't even NEAR the target."

Akko rolled her eyes like she did nothing wrong. "Jeez sorry. He said throw the ring around the pole and Jaruzelski is clearly a Pole."

Amanda burst laughing. Diana and the the heroes looked more embarrassed.

Jaruzelski blinked slowly. "Are you kidding me?"

"Forgive her, she's like that." hissed Diana.

"Hey Akko, reminder that Bakugou is part Polish himself." joked Amanda.

"Pull that on me and you're dead." hissed Bakugou.

"Come on guys, it was an honest mistake." defended Deku.

"Yeah, I'll get it this time." nodded Akko.

"No you won't!" scolded Jaruzelski. "No more rounds for you."

"Awww, but I really wanted that Scorbunny!" whimpered Akko.

Todoroki tried to lead the group onward. "Just move it. I'm sure you can buy a plush at a gift shop here."

Deku bit his lip as he glanced at Akko's saddened expression. On one hand she did something stupider than normal, but on the other hand he knew that she didn't really mean to be hurtful. He felt like he had to something as seeing her sad twisted his own heart in two.

"Wait!" called out Deku.

His friends stopped before they could move on.

Deku faced the pissed Jaruzelski. "I'd like to play please."

"Fat chance." denied Jaruzelski.

Deku got out his wallet. "I'll pay triple the fee!"

"Sold!" agreed Jaruzelski. He handed Deku the rings and proceeded to duck, not taking risks.

Deku took a deep breath as he looked at Akko's surprised demeanor and onto the game's target pole. A ring toss wasn't the hardest thing he ever did by a long shot, but doing this for Akko was really a whole other level for him. He had to win.

Remembering how Amadna won, Deku tossed the ring. Right on his first try, it landed straight around the pole.

"You did it!" cheered Akko.

"Nice one." complimented Amanda.

"Well, I did copy what you did." chuckled Deku.

"Way to learn from the best." smirked Amanda.

Without even Deku needing to say it, Jaruzelski reached for the Scorbunny plush and handed it to Deku, relieved that the six miscreants were finally going to leave him alone.

Deku held the plush and with a feint gulp, presented it to Akko. "Uh...here you go."

Akko gasped with joy and the twinkles in her eye returned as she hugged the plush. "Yay! Scorbunny!"

The sight of Akko cuddling the plush as the group continued their journey was really getting to the heroes. Her rather adorable display was once again tugging on heartstrings they didn't know existed, much to Amanda's and Diana's slight jealousy.

Bakugou scratched his hair in confusion, even if he wouldn't admit that he liked the innocent scene. "So you really like that stupid bunny thing?"

Akko stopped nuzzling the plush and nodded playfully. "Yeah! I grew up with his game. He's so cute and strong and we even have the same smile. See?"

Just then, Akko beamed an adorable wide smile that mirrored the one printed on the Scorbunny plush rather cutely. The joy they radiated behind their matching eyes and grin synced like magic.

In that instant, the three heroes clutched their chests from the overwhelming cuteness that oozed from Akko and her Scorbunny's smile.

"Again?" frowned Diana. "Are you alright?"

Todoroki let his grip go. "Sorry, but that was actually pretty cute Akko."

Amanda tried to divert Todoroki's attention and began escorting him more closely. "Come on, if you die from heart failure, I ain't getting my extra credit."

"Oh so, that's what you fucking care about." gritted Bakugou as he protested by moving closer to Diana, who bit her cheeks to restrain a cackle at his expense.

Akko waited for her friends to move a few paces ahead as looked back at Deku, who waited with her as he recovered from his 'cute-attack'.

She looked at the Scorbunny plush and then back at Deku. A part of Akko felt guilty. She humiliated him and the rest of her friends with her dumb move, and Deku stepped in to save face by winning her the Scorbunny. He even paid extra just to have a shot at it. All for her.

"Hey Deku." calmly said Akko as she crept towards him.

"Um, yeah?" replied Deku, who was still on edge due to Akko being close to him.

  

"Thanks for winning me this. It means a lot. I mean, even after I messed up." whispered Akko.

Deku closed his eyes and sheepishly grinned. "Don't worry. I didn't want to see you all sad and embarrassed you know?"

A thanks wasn't enough for Akko. She really wanted to make it up to him after all he did for her. After all he did stand up for her dream of showing the world how great magic was.

Already close to him, Akko brought her face forward and gave Deku a quick and friendly kiss on the cheek. Nothing too serious. Just a peck.

Deku's eyes then shot open, his face turning red and Akko swore she saw steam come out. He raised a finger, but only gibberish that switched between english and japanese came out. Akko wondered what would have happened if she went for the lips.

"Whoa!" called out Amanda. "Did I just see that?"

"I think you did." supported Diana.

Bakugou laughed at Deku. "Aw man, look at his pathetic face." Todoroki responded by giving him yet another 'Bakugou restraint' elbowing.

Akko hugged her plush close, her face flustered as she tried to deny it. "Um...what do you think I did huh?"

Amanda raised an eyebrow. "I coulda sworn you placed your lips on his, but your plushie didn't let me see the full thing."

Deku suddenly shook his head and spoke. "Huh? Akko didn't kiss me on the lips."

"Yeah!" remarked Akko haughitly. "I just whispered in his ear that he was my favourite hero and a really great guy..thing..yeah..right?"

Deku for oncem caught on to a social cue. "Uh-yeah! That's all she said."

"Favourite hero? Some, shit taste." shrugged Bakugou.

"Could you just be happy for him?" gritted Todoroki.

"In any case they have plausible deniability," remarked Diana. "So how about we continue rather than waste time with gossip."

"I agree. I have more games I wanna try out." nodded Amanda.

Akko and Deku glanced at each other, the awkwardness between them at new heights. They didn't say a word to each other and they silently agreed not to comment on Akko's gesture.

Instead, Akko held Deku's hand and led him to their friends. For once, Deku didn't get too red.

Hours past of the group just checking out games that practically devolved into a competition between Amanda, Bakugou, Todoroki and Diana. Amanda had the most experience with normal festival games while Bakugou and Todoroki impressed the few joints dedicated to quirks. Much to Diana's overachiever frustration however, no games centered around magic, which didn't let her win anything.

When Akko and Deku finally had their chance to pick and event, they elected to see the only magical festivity, a wizard using his magic to conduct a small brass ensemble in a glorious half hour side show. Impressive, but not much spectacle to speak of.

As night finally fell, it was time to get dinner at an open air patio. There was a stage for various musicians and dancers that were free to perform when they wanted, with some musicians already playing.

Bakugou meanwhile eyed the sign of the vendor they were getting dinner from. "Honeckers Hot Stuff? Huh, my German ancestor was a Honecker, and my Polish was a Jaruzelski now that I fucking remember."

"And?" inquired Todoroki.

"They were dicks." said Bakugou.

"That explains everything." bluntly stated Todoroki.

"Fuck off halfy!" growled Bakugou.

"Could you not try to kill someone, thanks." groaned Amanda as the rest of the group waited behind them.

Diana called out. "Oh, and no drinking! God knows what the five of you would be like when you're drunk."

"We're not even old enough to drink!" protested Bakugou.

Diana glared at Akko. "Oh trust me, when there's a will, there's a way."

"I didn't mean to drink that much!" retorted Akko.

"What are you talking about?" inquired Deku.

"Don't ask." shook Diana, disappointing the heroes who wanted to hear the story.

Once they ordered, Amanda dragged everyone to a seat right next to the circle where people could perform.

Amanda downed her food quickly and kept an eye on the procession. "There's gonna be an Irish band playing after these guys. Can't wait!"

"Never really heard Irish music. Should be interesting." remarked Todoroki.

"You'll love it, trust me." assured Amanda.

After a few more minutes, Amanda realized that she spoke too soon. After the current musicians stopped playing, a Showrunner stepped up and made an unfortunate announcement on the microphone.

"Um, due to transportation issues, The Golden Harp will not be playing live tonight, leaving this ten minute slot open. Sorry, so we'll just play their music on our speakers." he said.

Amanda was devastated. She really wanted the heroes to get a taste of what she enjoyed listening, singing and dancing too. Now there was just going to be another awkward silence between the witches and heroes over dinner.

But then, Amanda had an idea. She immediately stood up, catching the Showrunner's attention.

"Amanda! Get down!" scolded Diana.

She ignored her and pointed to the showrunner. "Hey! Can you make it up to a young Irish rose and play The Golden Harp's Waltz Of The Meadows?"

The Showrunner raised an eyebrow, but nodded. "Sure miss."

Right as he was about to turn the song on, Amanda grabbed Diana and Akko by the shoulders.

"Hey I'm eating!" protested Akko.

"Wipe your mouth. You two are coming with me." smirked Amanda.

The heroes watched Amanda yank Diana and Akko onto the stage while everyone else looked on with interest and confusion.

"What the fuck are they doing?" winced Bakugou, almost looking away from embarrassment.

"A magic show?" guessed Deku, who also secured Akko's Scorbunny plush while she was aside.

Todoroki thought about it. "I think that's not quite it."

Amanda meanwhile gave a tamborine to Diana and some maracas to Akko. "Do you two remember how the song goes?"

"Oh, I love that song!" beamed Akko.

"How could I not? You played it while Holbrooke was chasing you during broom flying class." moaned Diana.

"Perfect!" smiled Amanda.

The Showrunner glanced at Amanda, whose nod signalled him to play the song which blazed from the speakers.

The music started playing slowly, building up to a more powerful note as all eyes fixed on Amanda, who struck a pose ready to dance, with Diana and Akko staring at her in anticipation.

Next thing everyone knew, the music sped up and grew louder, with Amanda dancing perfectly to the rhythm. Her movements were flawless, wild and graceful, immediately earning the cheers from everyone who was watching.

The heroes were awestruck as they watched Amanda move, both from her impressive technique and the sheer beauty that radiated from it. Sure, they had seen her alluring dance on a broom up close and personal, but Amanda was just as skilled on her feet as well.

Best of all, Amanda was looking right at the heroes as she danced, effectively dedicating her dance to them, which gave other onlookers catching her glance a certain idea.

And speaking of alluring, the heroes were especially mesmerized by the way she twirled around. As if the might of her spins weren't enough, Amanda had to absolutely tug on her skirt while she turned, a motion that absolutely sent tingles down the spines of the boys. Deku of course gulped and shook heavily at the sight of Amanda's legs. Even Bakugou was a little tense with the stirrings inside of him, captivated by Amanda's dance.

None could compare to how Todoroki felt as he watch. There was just something more to Amanda's dance that he loved. How she danced with a fiery passion and yet was so collected and cool was a contrast he certainly love. She had a talent, and she owned it, unafraid to ever show it off, but did so with a certain feeling of class.

Another twirl came around, revealing more leg than ever before, and when Amanda complimented it with a wink towards the heroes, they once again grabbed their chests as their hearts twisted.

Meanwhile, Diana and Akko aimlessly played their instruments while Amanda took over the spotlight, clearly jealous at the attention she was receiving. Everyone was gazing at the spectacle of the redheaded witch dancing to Irish music while no one paid any mind to her two friends.

They weren't too bitter, but it was a sting given that both of them had aspirations about being front and center not regulated to the background. That wasn't even getting to the tiny feeling of distraught that Bakugou and Deku were looking at Amanda with a certain way.

Soon enough, the music came to a graceful halt, and Amanda's dance with it. She struck her final pose, and the audience went wild with clapping. Amanda bowed, Diana and Akko too busy glaring at her to do the same.

The heroes were clapping slowly, too awestruck to be their normal selves.

Amanda got off the stage and made her way to where the heroes were sitting laughing at loud while the other five of the group were still blushing hard.

Amanda slammed her hands on the table. "Oh my God! You boys are soooo innocent when it comes to girls!"

She didn't think it was possible, but the heroes got even more red.

Bakugou stood his ground. "What the fuck do you mean!"

Amanda placed her hands on her hips. "Oh come on, you guys had three separate cutie panic attacks today. The sight of a girl playing with a cat, hugging a plush or dancing beautifully. I know for a fact that even the manliest of man is weak to that."

The boys tried to look away, but to no avail, paralyzed by embarrassment.

Diana stated her theory. "Since you are that age, have you three ever thought about girls at all? We sometimes get the feeling this is all new to you,"

The heroes were at a loss. Sure they had plenty of female friends at UA, but they never interacted with them in the way they were interacting with the witches. What they had done with the likes of Uraraka and Yaoyorozu generally tied back to hero antics most of the time.

"Um…" muttered Deku. "I...I wasn't...brave enough...to think or talk about them like that until maybe now."

"I wasn't exactly raised in environment to explore such feelings." honestly stated Todoroki.

Bakugou crossed his arms. "Don't think so."

"I appreciate the honesty." remarked Diana.

Akko tried to cheer them up. "Hey! It's okay to be embarrassed."

Amanda placed a finger on her chin. "And it's still pretty cute. I mean, three rough and tough heroes who are still a little shy around girls? I dig it."

"I'm not that rough." whispered Deku.

Amanda giggled and leaned forward towards them, still not done with her teasing. "Anyway, you guys did great on this date anyway."

"DATE!" screeched the others.

Akko and Deku looked at each other. It was especially awkward for them given that Akko kissed Deku on the cheek for winning her the Scorbunny plush.

Amanda snickered. "Come on. We walked across the beautiful river, talked about our futures, ate together, got your hearts flustered, each of you insisted on paying for us, and you got a little protective around us with those drunk college kids. I call that a date."

"That last one was just an instinct." hissed Bakugou.

"A hero instinct, or date instinct?" said a flustered Diana.

Amanda threw her hands around Diana and Akko once more. "Relax everyone, I'm just messing with you."

The heroes finally calmed down, and Todoroki looked at the time, trying to change the subject. "Should we be going now?"

Bakugou got up and began marching towards the exit. "Yeah, I'm getting the fuck outta here."

Diana sped up ahead of him, clearly unwilling to be anything but the leading guide with her group. For a second, it seemed that everyone just forgot about the previous minute.

Diana too checked the time and announced the plans. "Alright, so we still have quite a bit of time to make it back to the station before our train arrives…"

POW POW POW

Startled and caught by surprise, everyone suddenly looked behind them and up in the sky, where a multitude of fireworks were exploding in the sky. They didn't know that it was part of the program, so while there was a second of shock, they were then instantly drawn to the display.

Right before they could each comment or enjoy the display however, the heroes and witches noted an awkward detail. Amanda, Diana and Akko were grabbing Todoroki's, Bakugou's and Deku's arm respectively.

Deku's pupils shrunk, while Akko laughed sheepishly as she slowly let go.

Amanda instantly apologized. "Sorry about that."

"No worries." quickly said Todoroki, who wouldn't have minded if she continued holding on.

Diana meanwhile quickly snapped her hands away as she tried to look aside, but now it was Bakugou's turn to tease.

"What was that?" laughed Bakugou, making his voice as loud as possible given the disruptive sounds of the fire works.

"Absolutely nothing." defied Diana.

"Really, because I think you three got scared for a second." sneered Bakugou.

"Hey, you three got all jumpy too." countered Amanda.

"But we didn't grab your fucking arms." noted Bakugou.

"It was just an instinct okay?" blurted Diana, whose eyes widened as she realized what she said.

Diana and Bakugou looked at each other and simply laughed at the irony of their statements.

Akko shot up a proposal. "Hey! Since we're early, can we watch the fireworks. Just for a bit?"

"Yeah, they look so great tonight!" agreed Deku.

Amanda, Todoroki, Bakugou and Diana didn't even need a second to agree. As long as it meant another memory they could look back at and laugh at.

They all looked up at the massive fireworks display, awestruck by the patterns and sparks that were illuminating the night sky. Truth be told, it wasn't too different from what they had seen before, but there was something about being together that made this display look and feel better than the others.

And as they watched, the boys snuck a look at the girls, admiring how bewitching they looked under the colorful sky.


	14. Magical Culinary Class

Diana took a deep breath, trying to clear her mind in the shower as the water poured down her body. After their hectic Saturday, everyone returned to Luna Nova without incident, and their Sunday was mundane. The UA boys caught up on work, while she, Akko and Amanda hung out with their usual roommates.

In a considerable improvement, the news of what happened on Saturday's debate eased tensions at Luna Nova. Well, Deku and Todoroki were tolerated, Bakugou still set the other witches on edge. Even the school's courageous journalist Wangari dared not to interview or write about the heroes, fearing how Bakugou would react, making Diana wonder how he planned to deal with the media if he ever became a professional hero.

He was brash, rude and destructive. His flippant attitude towards magic certainly didn't help Diana's first impressions. Yet, she always saw a bit of himself in her. Bakugou was a perfectionist, gave his all, scoffed at fools who thought great power was child's play and worked hard to develop his abilities.

Diana guessed that Bakugou's strength was respected, but his perfectionism made him feared at UA. She could relate to that, and like her, Bakugou wasn't going to apologize for who he was. And now he declared a respect for magic, or at least her, and the feeling was mutual, a feeling Diana realized she appreciated more than she should have.

She still tried to move her thoughts past Bakugou, but to no avail. She tried to think about the shower water. The hot, steaming water that covered every inch of her body. Hot like the flames of Bakugou's explosions. Hot like him.

The memory of Bakugou grabbing Diana during their first broom-flying class together played through her mind. Sure he probably did it to beat her at the task, but she didn't discount the fact that he used it as an excuse to hold her with his strong grip.

Diana wouldn't have minded if Bakugou shared this shower with her now, thinking about him rubbing soap all over her.

Right before she moved her hand across her body to act on her thoughts, Diana heard a banging on the shower stall.

Her eyes shot open, blushing upon realizing what she was about to do. "Yes?"

She heard Hannah's voice. "Diana, you there? You've been showering for a while."

Barbara's voice rang too. "Yeah, you never take this long!"

"Just a second!" Diana cursed herself for losing track of time, all because she had to think about Bakugou in ways she hoped she wouldn't again.

As Diana turned off the water and put on a towel, she swore to herself that she would abandon those delusions. She opened the door and faced Hannah and Barbara, both in uniform.

"Apologies." muttered Diana, trying to forget the last minute.

"Ah, it's okay!" assured Hannah.

"We'll be on time." added Barbara.

"Of course we will." Diana headed towards her clothes to change, but stopped to ask her friends something.

"By any chance did you two actually see our debate on Saturday?" inquired Diana.

Hannah and Barbara glanced at each other, and after a small pause, began giggling.

"I mean, we were gonna!" said Barbara.

"But then news came up that All Might was gonna have his American citizenship canceled so we just had to watch that!" laughed Hannah.

Barbara tried to string some words while hollering. "I mean….he was like the ultimate reverse weeaboo….and he got screwed by the Yankees!"

"Right." groaned Diana, readying herself for the next class.

* * *

Deku, Bakugou and Todoroki stared at the array of kitchen utensils before them, the three sitting in Luna Nova's dining hall, with their table even outfitted with special microphones.

Todoroki glanced at Professor Badcock, who was checking notes on her clipboard as if the heroes weren't even there. "Is this why we were told not to eat anything today?"

"Precisely," confirmed Badcock. "You three will be the judges of a variety of magically cooked meals by our witches, each making something from their home countries."

"So our objective is to taste food?" checked Deku.

"Yes, and to give your honest judgment on what they're creating." explained Badcock. "You three have a more important role than you think. Jasminka talks about how she believes mages can reach out by opening magical dining establishments, something I believe is worth the investment. So, to make the best impression, such establishments should only serve food that is well received no?"

"So this isn't an actual class, we're being focus tested for your fucking restaurant idea?" caught on Bakugou.

"Indeed," admitted Badcock, not even bothering to look Bakugou in the eye. "Regardless, cooking food with magic requires a plethora of magical skills, especially now that they're finally allowed to cook more than magical potatoes."

Bakugou laughed. "Fucking really, it's a cooking class and they only cooked potatoes!"

"Silence young man!" scolded Badcock. "I'll have you know those poatotoes are the staple of a true magical diet, especially when I was in the trenches of the great war!"

"Here we go." muttered Todoroki, bracing himself for another flashback.

"The year was 1916," narrated Badcock. "My squadron was on recon in France for enemy magical activity when a young wizard offered to share some of his magical potato salad to nourish us. We all had an unforgettable luncheon, but our momentary lapse in concentration allowed….Jerry….to get the drop on us. I had to spend the next two years in a Hamburg POW camp forced to subsist on nothing but an utterly Kraut selection of Schnitzel, Sauerbraten and three different kinds of Wurst. I came close to MADNESS mastering the courage to ask the chef out on a date when the war ended, but he came out as gay."

"Um, what about the class professor?" chirped Deku.

"Ah, Sucy should be out of the kitchen in a moment, while I'm going to observe and listen to you all from a safe distance behind explosive proof materials." replied Badcock, who skirted to the other side of the hall which housed a hastily put together observation center. Unsurprisingly, she modeled it after World War I fortifications.

The heroes realized why the microphones made sense all of a sudden. Deku checked their function with Badcock and sure enough, Sucy soon exited the kitchen doors while holding a plate she then placed on the heroes' table.

"The fuck am I looking at?" questioned Bakugou.

"Suman," told Sucy. "Basically a rice cake."

"Oh! Rice cakes are great!" chirped up Deku as he quickly grabbed a piece and began nibbling on it.

Todoroki was more hesitant to eat, as Sucy was smiling evilly. "This is potion free right?"

"Nope," replied Sucy. "I had to use magical methods right? Scared to eat a little potion are we?"

"THE HELL I AM!" twitched Bakugou as he grabbed a Suman and chowed it down, too angry at Sucy to give any real criticism about the food.

All the while in the kitchen, the witches were casting their spells and brewing their potions to make their food taste appetizing.

Akko meanwhile was banished to her own section of the kitchen separated from the main portion via another door which she slammed open to complain.

"Why can't I cook with you all in the bright and cheery part? It's a dungeon in there!" Akko moped.

Diana took a break and told Akko bluntly. "Because, you are a walking a hazard when it comes to magic, and God knows what sort of destruction you'll especially bring in an assignment when we're meant to innovate and experiment!"

"And you'll destroy our stuff too!" called out Amanda.

Lotte came to Akko's defense. "But all she's making is ramen in a cup!"

"Watch her screw that up." laughed Amanda, causing Akko to isolate herself while pouting.

Akko slammed the door that separated her side of the kitchen. "I'll show all of them! I'll make the best tasting ramen in a cup ever! Deku will love it, Todoroki will smile and Bakugou will say something nice to me! Then my magic noodle cups will be just as popular as those regular noodle cups those stupid starving college students eat!"

Akko took a deep breath after ranting to herself and stared at the noodle cup, which she had yet to work on.

"Alright Akko, how do we do this again?" she muttered. "Think, a Japanese girl like you should know this! It should be like the normal thing. Hmmmm, did you pour the water first, or make it hot, or remove the lid? Ohhh I can't remember!"

With a sigh, Akko took out her wand and readied a spell. "Well, I always burned myself when my dad made it for me, so I guess you gotta make it really hot anyway."

Akko cast the last fire-based spell she remembered casting, and the noodle cup went up in scorching, blazing, flames

"Oh my God! My noodles are ruined!" screamed Akko, as she ran in a circle without remembering to actually put out the fire.

She was ruined once more. Now the heroes were never going to tase her magical ramen cup noodles and tell her how great she was. And she was bound to fail this class too.

"But," suddenly muttered Akko. "What if, I were to purchase outside noodles and disguise it as my magical cooking. Oh ho ho ho, delightfully devilish Akko!"

Akko exited her kitchen corner and shut the door behind her so no one would discover her mess. Luckily, Diana was too busy casting the right spells to cook to bother with her. Akko had her opening.

Without being stopped, Akko rushed out of the whole kitchen, running past Sucy and the heroes in the dining room.

Ever smug, Sucy herself had been given a bloody nose by Bakugou. It turned out that her meal was laced with a potion that turned their skin green, which he did not take too well.

The heroes noticed Akko running frantically, but paid her absolutely no mind, used to her shenanigans in class. Sucy all the while became the first student to join up with Professor Badcock behind the barriers, still grinning over her experiment working despite her broken nose.

Professor Badcock sighed as she glanced at Sucy, offering her a tissue. She would deal disciplinary action for both Sucy and Bakugou at a later time, and the fallout from the punch distracted her from noticing Akko running to town.

Once the heroes themselves downed their antidotes and had their skin colors returned to normal, a skittish Lotte emerged from the kitchen doors.

Lotte tried not to look at Bakugou and placed a tray on the table the heroes were sitting on, giving them a second to look at what she had cooked up.

"Um," gulped Lotte "I made Finnish meat balls called Lihapullat and I...well...I hope you like it."

"It smells great!" encouraged Deku.

"What is this presentation!" roared Bakugou. "It looks like clods of mud sitting in a miserable pool of caramel ice cream. Your gravy is a watery mess and the fact that I can smell your strong spices ain't fucking great."

"But," chirped Lotte, already trembling.

Todoroki stood up to Bakugou. "I know you think you're a five-star chef, but how about we actually give it a taste before complaining."

Bakugou didn't reply and stabbed his fork into one of the meatballs and took a bite off of it, Deku and Todoroki doing the same.

Deku ate his piece faster than Bakugou to give some compliments to cheer Lotte up, who was sweating in anticipation.

"I really like how chewy it is! Tastes pretty good too." complimented Deku.

Lotte finally smiled. "Oh thanks,"

Todoroki bit his lip. "I'm not the person you should ask to review food, but this tastes like those Swedish meatballs I had in a furniture store cafe once."

Lotte took a breath of relief. "I can live with that."

Then came the dreaded Bakugou's turn to speak. "Clearly these dipshits shouldn't be trusted for anything. Lemme tell you something, I couldn't even taste your beef because remember those spices I was talking about?"

Lotte didn't reply.

Bakugou shoved the bitten meatball in Lotte's face. "That's because you were using them as a fucking crutch since you can't cook meat for shit. Look at this crap!"

"Wh-what?" whimpered Lotte, unable to see what was wrong.

"IT'S RAW!" pointeed Bakugou. "Look how fucking red the inside is? Were you trying to fucking poison me!

"NO!" swore Lotte.

"So, I gotta believe that your skull houses a worthless brain like an idiot sandwich?" checked Bakugou.

Todoroki and Deku began trying to restrain Bakugou, but his words kept leaving his mouth.

"WHAT ARE YOU!" yelled Bakugou. "MURDERER OR IDIOT SANDWICH?"

"AN IDIOT SANDWICH!" screamed Lotte from the top of her lungs.

"GOOD! Now get the fuck outta here." commanded Bakugou, and Lotte ran off to take shelter behind Professor Badcock's Bakugou-proof barricade.

Todoroki finally let Bakugou go and glared at him. "You're a real work of art."

"Appreciated icy hot." hissed Bakugou.

"Maybe you could be nicer next time?" calmly suggested Deku.

"Maybe when they start cooking better I just might." retaliated Bakugou.

Next up was Jasminka, who approached the group with her signature smile, eager to share what she had cooked. Magical culinary class was her favorite of course.

"How is it going everyone!" greeted Jasminka.

"Not bad." nodded Deku.

"Could be worse." shrugged Todoroki.

"Alright, what the fuck are we gonna be eating?" demanded to know Bakugou.

"I love that you're excited!" chirped Jasminka, oblivious to Bakugou's rage. "It's lamb pierogi. I know you three are going to be eating a lot, so I made one of my favorite fast foods for you all to try."

"Oh, you don't think I'm capable of downing all the shitty food you punks are gonna throw at me?" blurted Bakugou.

Todoroki uncharacteristically groaned out loud, tired by Bakugou just looking for an excuse to make himself or others angry.

Jasminka however, remained unmoved. "So you can eat a lot too? That's amazing! I guess we have something in common, so next time I'll cook more for you."

Bakugou scowled, while Deku and Todoroki lightly grinned at his anger.

Todoroki took the initiative and grabbed a pierogi. "Hope it's as good as it smells."

"I think it will." chuckled Deku, doing the same.

Bakugou munched on his too, trying to browbeat Jasminka into dropping her eyes closed smile, but to no avail.

After eating Jasminka's dish, the boys decided to hash out their thoughts.

Todoroki went first. "It was decent. I'm too used to dumplings from my home though."

"Oh, I don't blame you, Japanese dumplings are amazing!" understood Jasminka.

"Well, I think Russia and you did a great job!" beamed Deku.

Bakugou slammed his hands on the table. "Listen, I ain't gonna be a fucking softy on you."

"No worries, I need to improve of course!" agreed Jasminka.

Bakugou took a deep breath. "I'll give you this. The meat inside was cooked perfectly, everything was spiced right, the temperature was great and your dough's extra crisp was not bad at all. BUT, you wanna know what you fucked up!"

"What?" inquired Jasminka.

"WHERE THE FUCK IS THE LAMB SAUCE! HOW DO YOU EXPECT ME TO EAT ANYTHING LAMB RELATED WITHOUT IT!" raged Bakugou, smoke coming out of his nostrils.

Jasminka laughed. "Ah, it's not necessary for these pierogies, but everyone's taste is different. So maybe I'll try to make it with lamb sauce for you next time?"

"DOES ANYTHING BOTHER YOU?!" screeched Bakugou, who was almost pleading for her to get angry at that moment.

Jasminka still smiled. "Well, when I'm feeling down I like to make and eat some of my pierogies. It's real comfort food."

"Didn't work on him." muttered Todoroki.

A few witches later, it was Diana's turn to have her food judged by the less than stellar jury. It was evident that there was no real lesson to be learned other than magically tasting food just ending up like the conventional thing. Regardless, when Diana strutted out of the kitchen, she only had the intention to show off what she believed was perfection.

At first, the heroes saw her bring only what appeared to be a loaf of bread or pastry, which seemed too simple for Diana especially. Regardless, she appeared to have been rather proud of what she was about to serve. They guessed correctly that there was more to her meal than what meets the eye, and figured she made beef wellington.

She began setting up the meal, using her magic to levitate the plates and utensils for the heroes to use. They themselves waited in anticipation to try whatever she made, hoping it was as appetizing as it smelled and looked.

Diana looked serious about the presentation and began inspecting the beef wellington for any part that didn't align to her tastes like it was a prized artifact in a museum.

Bakugou took the time notice that Diana was humming once again as she made the final touches. Granted, it was for a briefer period compared to last time as Diana wrapped up everything, but Bakugou enjoyed it nonetheless.

He even noticed that Diana's frame had changed quite a bit since Monday, evidently having taken up his advice to work out a bit. Since chasing the witches on the broom flying courses always tired the heroes out, they never had a chance to check out the gym. Regardless, she didn't look like she was at Amanda's level, but she was getting there.

Before he could dwell on her appearance, Diana literally snapped Bakugou back to reality with the flick of her fingers as she announced her dish.

"I present to you three the finest British beef wellington magic can cook." haughtily said Diana.

Via magic, she controlled a fork and knife to cut a portion of the beef wellington to reveal the juicy and tender steak underneath it. The fact that she had her eyes closed and used her wand instead of her hands to utilize the fork and knife made the entire thing far more uptight and snobbish than it needed to be, but the heroes found it charming nonetheless.

Inside the loaf was a steak whose cut revealed a nice pinkish center. Taking their own forks and knives, the heroes began diving the beef wellington amongst themselves.

Diana all the while stared at them like a mother watching her children eat their food, and a chef awaiting inevitable praise.

One they finished, the heroes looked at Diana and tried putting their thoughts together. She raised an eyebrow, hoping to hear some good words, and the heroes knew what she expected.

Todoroki shrugged. "Can't say much. Kinda like those pierogies we had with Jasminka."

"Yeah, I don't really know how to judge since I've never had anything like it before." muttered Deku.

"Ignore those two assholes!" ordered Bakugou, standing up tall and looking Diana in the eye, catching her off guard.

Diana's own eyes widened as she stared at Bakugou, guessing that he was about to deliver a major rant at her, right when she was starting to like him.

Bakugou paused before speaking, building up tension. "Diana, let me be honest when I say that your beef wellington was the best fucking thing I've eaten all year."

Everyone's mouths dropped. It was so vulgar, and yet perhaps the greatest compliment Bakugou would give that day. Diana almost forgot to breathe when she heard those words.

He continued. "The beef inside was perfect. You knew how well it should have been cooked, the spices were great, and you clearly used some fucking beef sauce appropriately unlike that ass Jasminka. The pastry around it was also so fucking fluffy and crisp, the best combo possible. Honestly? I'd fucking kill to eat more of it."

Diana gasped, her face turning red. As odd as he put it, Bakugou's praise got to her, making her smile like she never did before. Truth be told though, most of that smile came from Bakugou's rather hammy delivery.

Even then, Bakugou wasn't exactly as enamored by Diana's cooking as much as he made it out to be, but he just had the sudden urge to go ballistic with his compliments to see if he could win Diana's smile, and he did.

All the while from the makeshift hero-proof shelter and pseudo-trench, the huddled witches and Badcock listened in on the conversation while also spying on the scene from a safe distance.

Lotte said what was all on their mind. "Oh my God, they're totally in love."

Hannah and Barbara pouted. They knew Diana was now on good terms with the heroes, but they refused to believe there was anything more.

"No way!" chided Hannah. "Our Diana would NEVER fall for someone like that demon."

"And it's not like Bakugou can even feel what love is!" yelled Barbara.

"Oh please," joined in Badcock, who was reading some romance novel, having given up on the heroes giving any real criticism. "They were doomed to fall in love since day one."

"Huh?" went every witch observing her.

"Think about it." sighed Badcock. "What do you notice about Deku, Todoroki and Bakugou?"

"That we're doomed if they're the next generation of top heroes?" muttered Sucy.

Badcock shook her head. "Akko, Amanda and Diana are the only ones who those three fools even remotely have a chance with. Bakugou and Diana's giant egos cancel each other out and I'm afraid they're the only ones on Earth who can look past their vicious glares for more than a second to appreciate the twisted beauty underneath. It's a matchmaking of prideful perfectionists."

Hannah and Barbara glanced at each other in despair.

Badcock shook her head. "Search your feelings, you know it to be true. For all of his earlier bravado against magic, most boys can't resist the allure of dating a magical witch. I'm sure she's tapping into one of his hidden fantasies."

"Ohh what about Todoroki and Amanda?" chirped Jasminka.

"Todoroki is a man of contrasts, and Amanda exemplifies that," said Badcock. "She can act like the most refined and graceful woman on Earth, but that's all her front for the fiery trickster she is. Besides, Todoroki would be utterly boring to deal with on dates, whereas Amanda can make anything remotely interesting, and I say the more boring it is, the more she'll try to make something out of it. That, and they always act like they're too good to care about anything."

"And Akko and Deku?" inquired Lotte.

"Easy!" laughed Badcock. "Both are passionate and obsess over their idols. Truth be told, Akko is lucky she has Deku to herself here. His pathetic look is what drives the ladies in Japan crazy these days, so Akko doesn't have to fear about confessing without a thousand Japanese love rivals ripping her apart."

"I'll disagree one thing though." piped up Sucy.

"And what's that?" checked Badcock.

"Akko lacks brain cells, while Deku is socially screwed." remarked Sucy.

Badcock nodded. "I agree! In any case, I expect those six young ones to get over their denial within a week."

Just then, the witches observed Diana heading towards the observation point, still flustered from Bakugou's exaggerated praise. As she approached, they silently knew not to discuss anything with her regarding her feelings.

After a few more witches went by it was then Amanda's turn to show off what she had, making her way to the boys while carrying a plate filled with hot proteins and bread toasted to perfection. The heroes smelled what had to be a breakfast fry they heard was popular in this part of Europe, and they were about to be proven right.

A smug grin on her face, Amanda placed the hot dish on the dining table. "All right boys, let's get to the good stuff. One full breakfast loaded with fried eggs and meat, some sweet beans, juicy cherry tomatoes and mushrooms, all rounded up with some crisp toast. What do you think?"

"We need to try it first dumbass." hissed Bakugou.

"Great presentation though." encouraged Deku.

Todoroki wanted to give her a bit more praise. "I agree, it looks simple, but delicious and efficient for filling you up."

Amanda nodded. "Makes it easier on my end since while the others were whacking out every spell they know to make something fancy, all I really gotta do is load up the burning magic."

The heroes were about to eat, only to jerk their heads to the sound of loud footsteps.

"Hold it!" yelled Diana, marching on over to the heroes and Amanda before anyone could take a bite.

"What's with you?" frowned Amanda, annoyed at being interrupted.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but you were supposed to cook something traditional, from YOUR homeland, am I right?" sarcastically remarked Diana.

"That's why I made an Irish full breakfast." glared Amanda.

Diana gave a fake laugh. "That's ridiculous, because last time I checked, the full breakfast is a staple of British cuisine, not Ireland's!"

Amanda rolled her eyes. "Not this again! What I made is pure Gaelic goodness with none of your Anglo stuffiness attached."

Diana clenched her fists, but refrained from raising her voice. "Is that so? Because from what I see from the beans to the eggs to well, EVERYTHING ELSE, you've just copied what we did. Of course, I could smell the oil from the barricades, so lord knows how much you've greased up that dish!"

"Really? Well, explains why they looked so eager to feast on something practical instead of pretentious show off food.." prodded Amanda.

"Girls! Can we just forget our troubles for a second!" pleaded Deku, whose eyes widened upon realizing what he just said. "Oh God, why did I have to say the word troubles!"

Before anyone could respond, Badcock called out to Diana on the microphone. "You get back here this instant Diana!"

Diana bit her lip, glared at Amanda who returned the gesture, and made her way back to the barricades.

Amanda winked to the heroes. "Alright, now that she's gone, let's get to business."

The heroes divided the different portions of the full Irish breakfast amongst themselves, making sure that they each got to try a piece of everything for a real judgment.

The first person to finish this time was Bakugou, who wanted to see Amanda's haughty face drop for the hell of it.

"Listen ginger," began Bakugou, which instantly earned him the scowl from Amanda he wanted to see. "You bragged about only using your flaming magic to fry this shit and it fucking shows! This thing tastes blander than Todoroki's sense of humor or Deku's little shit face. I mean come the fuck on! This is the shit I can cook up every day while your other witches at least made shit I've never heard of!"

Suddenly, Todoroki grabbed Bakugou's arm.

"What the?" recoiled Bakugou, who didn't have time to comprehend what was going on as Todoroki encased him in solid ice, freezing him in his startled expression.

Amanda raised her eyebrows, but otherwise wasn't going to complain about Bakugou's situation.

Todoroki all the while tried to articulate his thoughts. "You know, this is simple, but that's why I love it. It's a great source of protein all packed into one and it's really easy to eat. Everything tastes fresh and the grease is delictable. Therefore, I give this my praise."

Looking surprised for a moment, Amanda chuckled. "You have a way with words I guess. Thanks for the feedback though."

"Uh, I liked it." muttered Deku, his words ignored by Amanda since she was too busy basking in Todoroki's praise. The two looked at each other for a solid minute, Amanda mastering a compelling expression to turn Tododroki's own into an embarrassed grin she found attractive.

Amanda broke the silence and began heading the other way. "That was fun, but I gotta head back. Akko should be last and God knows I wanna be behind the barricades with whatever she thinks about."

Todoroki called back to her. "That was fun indeed."

He then glanced at the frozen Bakugou, who watched the whole thing with intense rage if his furious eyes were anything to go by.

Hesitantly, Todoroki freed Bakugou from his icy prison with his flaming quirk, wondering what punishment he'd have to endure from Badcock more than Bakugou's retaliation.

Bakugou readied an explosion to take out Todoroki. "I'm gonna fucking kill you icy hot!"

Akko's voice suddenly called out, stopping yet another fight in the nick of time. "You can't go killing on an empty stomach!"

The heroes observed Akko returning from her journey, which evidently was a restaurant in Blytonburry town given the bag she was carrying.

Todoroki noticed something peculiar about the logo. "Hey, doesn't that bag have the same mark that White Wolves Enterprises has? The mercenary company?"

Deku nodded. "Yeah! They do fine dining too."

All the while, Akko acted like there was nothing wrong at all, as she began frantically setting up her display. The heroes decided not to blatantly question her just yet.

"I hope you guys are ready for a taste of home with some mouth-watering soba noodles!" chirped Akko as she hastily removed the meal from its container.

"I thought you were making ramen in a cup?" frowned Deku.

Akko laughed nervously. "Oh no, that's just what I call soba in a bowl."

The heroes were not convinced at all, especially since they started noticing smoke coming from the kitchen room, quickly figuring out who was behind it. Deku played along for the sake of getting Akko a passing grade however, while his two classmates were genuinely entertained by Akko's demeanor, and were eager to see how far she could take the lie.

Bakugou ignored the smoke coming from the kitchen. "Who the hell calls soba ramen in a cup?"

"It's a nickname we use back in….Hyogo prefecture." twitched Akko.

"Hyogo? I have family from Kobe. No one fucking calls it that." smirked Bakugou.

"Oh not in Kobe, no...it's...uh from Akashi city." defended Akko.

Deku nervously tried to help Akko out. "Wow Akko, I didn't know you were from Akashi!"

"I don't think she is." bluntly remarked Todoroki.

"Aren't you guys gonna eat?" frowned Akko.

Bakugou readied his chopsticks to take the first bite out of the so called soba. Todoroki followed, and Deku prayed the professor didn't connect the kitchen fire to Akko.

Akko watched with anticipation as the heroes ate. She really wanted to pass this course for the sake of her dream, and that meant convincing non mages that magically cooked food was a true delight, even though she didn't actually cook the noodles.

Finishing his bite, Bakugou decided not to devolve into one of his signature rants, but instead decided to fuck with Akko further. "You know these noodles taste like the ones I had at that restaurant in Blytonburry the other day."

"Oh no! Purely magically made soba noodles." sheepishly smiled Akko.

"And you call it soba despite the fact that it's obviously udon?" checked Todoroki.

Akko noticed Todoroki holding up the noodles, which were the thick and white flour noodle instead of the brown buckwheat noodle found in soba.

"Um, you see...I think...one thing….yeah." blurted Akko.

Todoroki almost looked sullen, soba was his favorite food and here he was chewing on udon. "My disappointment is immeasurable and my day is ruined."

The pupils of Akko's eyes shrunk. Yet another class where she could kiss a good grade goodbye.

Bakugou rubbed further salt in the wound. "Yeah what the fuck did you think we were gonna say when you dared to give us this shit!"

Just then Deku charged up his quirk and slammed Bakugou and Todoroki's heads onto the table, temporarily knocking them out for just a moment.

Akko's mouth dropped. "Um, Deku?"

Deku took a deep breath. "IGNORE THEM. Those...noodles you gave me were the best thing I've ever eaten! They were so firm and chewy, sucking up all the flavor from that amazing broth you cooked up! It did more than warm my stomach Akko, it warmed my heart! It's just amazing to know that there's someone out there who can use magic to cook just like you! I hope that one day when you're just as successful as Shiny Chariot, your noodles will be a staple of everyone's diet just like every brand of cereal All Might put his face on."

"Yay!" cheered Akko, tears practically in her eyes. "Thank you so much Deku!"

It especially meant a lot to Akko that it was Deku praising her. Sure, she wanted to stick it to Bakugou and Todoroki's face whenever she could, but the only opinion she really cared for was the sweet and brainy Deku's.

Deku smiled widely, trying not to look at the obvious restaurant logos on the bag Akko bought her noodles in. Of course, that was an easy task when he could just look at her happy eyes.

Their moment was cut off however, when Bakugou and Todoroki regained their senses and faced Deku with venomous glares.

"Why!" yelled Todoroki at Deku, who was too busy still staring at Akko to pay attention.

Bakugou readied an explosion in his hand. "You're so fucked!"

Just before Deku's classmates could dish out their revenge on him, Professor Badcock and the rest of the witches came storming down the dining hall. They finally noticed the smoke.

"Good Lord, what is happening in there!" yelled Badcock as she opened the doors of the kitchen, revealing the hellfire that was blazing within it.

Amanda facepalmed. "Akko really did screw it up!"

Diana readied her wand. "We'll deal with consequences later, let's put out this fire first."

With Akko's poor luck, the fire, of course, had to spread the moment she presented her own dish. She was at least thankful she went last, which left no one in the kitchen exposed to harm. She sighed and moved towards her professor and classmates to explain herself. Yet another class she would have to find some way to make up on.

Deku and Todoroki rushed to aid in helping put out the inferno, which was clearly resistant to quite a few of the anti-flame magic the witches were desperately using. Akko evidently did not cast a normal fire spell.

Bakugou on the other hand just observed the chaos before him. It played out more excitingly in his head, so he nonchalantly turned away and headed the other direction, muttering "Wonder if Kirishima's online."


	15. Amanda O'Neill And The Half-Hot Prince

Amanda was woken up by the door opening. She cursed mentally and immediately began covering herself with a blanket, hoping her roommates were too oblivious to recognize what was going on.

Jasminka and Constanze entered their dorm room, while Amanda tried her best to look like nothing had happened, which given her odd demeanor at the moment, would be an impossible feat.

"Enjoying your nap?" chirped Jasminka.

"Yeah, what time is it?" quickly said Amanda, attempting to sound as confident as possible.

"Time for us to go grab our afternoon tea of course!" answered Jasminka.

Amanda rolled her eyes and took a deep breath. "Uh, thanks, but I think I'll pass."

"Are you sure?" inquired Jasminka, who wasn't sad or disappointed, but was always eager to invite people to her many meals of the day.

"Positive," assured Amanda. "Besides, I'm gonna probably snoop around Appleton in a bit if you know what I mean."

Jasminka laughed. "You're always getting into trouble. They'll find out soon you know."

"Well, they might now that I faced those dorks in my true form at the debate, but I might as well have one last laugh," replied Amanda. "So yeah, you guys can just head out while I get ready and change."

"Alrighty then!" beamed Jasminka, who was about to leave with Constanze until Amanda messed up badly.

Still clutching her blanket with one hand, Amanda was too caught up in the moment to notice that she let her other one tap the touchscreen of one of Constanze's magitek devices.

Constanze immediately heard the sound of a video player streaming something, which was an electronic Amanda and no witch at Luna Nova had no normal access to.

Constanze sprinted over before Amanda could react, a combination of the former's desire to claim what was her's and the latter's embarrassment stopping Amanda from using her quick reflexes.

The magitek video player was seized from Amanda and Constanze showed the item to Jasminka. Footage of the heroes' adventure during dungeon exploring class was playing, specifically the part with Todoroki slaughtering a horde of monsters.

Jasminka looked worried for once. "Did you steal that from Constanze's workshop?"

There was no point denying, so Amanda simply replied with a "Yep."

A nasty death glare from Constanze was shot at Amanda. She swiped her fingers across the screen to look at what videos Amanda had been watching in the two hours between then and the end of class.

Jasminka said each clip out loud. "Security footage from the boys fighting in the dungeon, their fights with the demons, and Todoroki's duel with Bakugou AND Deku during that sports festival a while back?"

Amanda tried to save herself, she was never in a situation like this. "Yeah, can you believe that Constanze somehow snagged magical security footage? Damn, that's impressive."

Constanze wasn't smiling.

Jasminka looked back to Amanda. "But why were you watching this?"

The truth was that while she was coming to terms with her inner tensions, Amanda couldn't help but think about Todoroki's heroic feats. His combat technique, strength, prowess and the mighty clash of his fire and ice quirk had been making Amanda feel a little tingly on the inside. After a minute of mental debate, she decided that the best way to relieve herself was to watch footage of his battles, which she knew Constanze would somehow have footage of on her devices.

One heist later, the next thing Amanda knew, she was getting turned on by seeing Todoroki fight.

Amanda bit her lip, trying to think of an excuse. "Um, because I wanna know how these guys fight if we're gonna beat them the next time our sadistic professors set up an exercise?"

For a second, it looked like Amanda's bluff worked.

"I getcha...wait...are you naked?" realized Jasminka as Amanda clutched her blanket tighter.

Constanze just nodded to confirm Jasminka's suspicions. Amanda took a deep breath, hoping that Jasminka was too innocent to fully put two and two together. In reality, Amanda, Diana and Akko were the ones oblivious that the rest of Luna Nova figured out the obvious.

Amanda bit her lip. "Congrats, you figured it out."

"Ohhhh….I get it." nodded Jasminka.

"You do?" Amanda quietly asked her face turned as red as her hair. She thought that if Jasminka knew the truth, it would be the end of her reputation as she knew it.

Jasminka however, decided to spare her friends feelings for her sake. "Sure I get it. Some of my friends back home sleep in the nude because it's more comfortable. It's nothing to be embarrassed about, just let us know in advance okay?"

Amanda took a breath of relief. "Sure, of course."

"Great!" beamed Jasminka. "Well, come on Constanze, let's go get tea while Amanda puts something on."

Jasminka exited, while Constanze tucked her device in her pocket, rather risking getting caught by a teacher than have Amanda use it to get off on footage of Todoroki.

Amanda buried her face in her pillow and blanket. As fun as it was thinking about Todoroki like that, she had a few pranks to pull.

* * *

Amanda hid behind some foliage as she looked at the scene before her. There were a ton of dignitaries, businessmen and maybe even a few minor heroes and mages all heading into the entrance of Appleton Academy. Of course, they would be the type of people attracted to what was going to be presented in a few hours.

While on Cosntanze's devices, she learned about those private armed groups hosting a giant presentation in Appleton with the obvious intent to have their services bought over by people, specifically the rich ones who thought quirks and magic were a frivolous waste. With all the commotion that was going on about the villain that could turn heroes evil, it was the perfect time to invest in a more alternative solution.

It was just as Akko and Deku feared, the worst excesses of the private sector trying to bring about a broken form of social change. Of course, Amanda didn't care much for the implications and just lost herself in the delight of having a variety of targets instead of just a cute Appleton boy.

And speaking of said cute Appleton boys, Amanda checked around to make sure no one was looking into her direction and cast a spell that put on her disguise, giving her the hair and uniform typical of its students. No one was yet the wiser, but even she acknowledged this adventure had a final vibe to it since Andrew, Louis or Frank had a good idea of her features.

However, once Amanda stepped out of the bushes and began approaching the crowd, it turned out her fears would be realized, but not by an Appleton guy.

"Amanda?" suddenly said a voice that could only belong to Todoroki.

Frozen, Amanda turned around and faced the hero staring at her with a bewildered expression. She was certain that no one saw her put on her Appleton outfit, and Todoroki looked like he had only seen her at that moment without tailing her.

Amanda's pupils shrunk. "T-Todoroki?"

He looked concerned. "What are you doing?"

Unable to think clearly due to the shock of being caught by the boy she was pleasuring herself too in her dreams a few hours ago, Amanda grabbed his hand and dragged him off to the side.

Amanda looked him in the eye. "Was my disguise that obvious?"

"Disguise?" frowned Todoroki, before putting two and two together. "Oh. I get what you're doing."

"And I would have done it, but you called me out." sighed Amanda.

Todoroki shrugged. "I can't forget your eyes, face and hair. Also, I hope your intention was disguising yourself as a first year, because otherwise you'd have to explain why you're on track for the record of never hitting puberty."

Amanda laughed, while Todoroki's face remained neutral. "I'll forget that last part, but that beginning was nice."

Todoroki took a deep breath in response, another sign of his icy shell being compromised, something which turned on Amanda to no end.

She flicked out her wand and began to undo her Appleton look, while Todoroki looked on with interest. As the magical light that surrounded Amanda vanished, he was taken by surprise at her appearance not fully reverting to its old form. Rather than her uniform, she wore some street clothes consisting of a jacket, skirt and shirt that simultaneously screamed classy and confrontational.

To top it off, Amanda gave herself a longer set of majestic red hair, albeit with a few of strands of what Todoroki could only call 'hair fangs' sticking out to keep up the refined, but dangerous look.

Amanda placed a hand on her hip and smirked. "Pretty useful spell huh?"

"It is." quipped Todoroki, trying his best to stay focused. "Did you always have hair this long?"

Amanda chuckled. "Sorta, but I gave myself some length to make this work. Trying a few new things out you know?"

Todoroki nodded. "Wish I had that spell when I was infiltrating that villain hideout."

"Well, I mostly use it to pull pranks," shrugged Amanda, whose voice turned mischievous. "But I have fun with it for reasons other than sly activities, speaking of which."

Amanda activated her spell once more, and the result caused Todoroki's mouth to drop.

This time, Amanda gave herself something truly fantastical. She sprouted two fox ears and a tail, combined with a mischievous pose. He remembered foxes were Amanda's favourite animal for fitting reasons, and now she was pulling off that kitsune girl look marvelously.

Amanada's tone got more flirty and she approached Todoroki slowly. "So, do you like it?"

"I do." Todoroki gulped, but maintained firm. There were a thousand feelings rushing through him that he didn't know he had, and it was a miracle that he was still keeping still and not getting overwhelmed by alien sensations.

Amanda meanwhile loved Todoroki's feeble attempts to stay calm. The next thing they knew, she began circling around him like, well, a fox trapping her prey. She placed a finger on him that skirted around his elbows and chest as she spoke, Todoroki being too shocked to make a move.

"I've always really liked this form, but I think the ears need some work." cooed Amanda, as she twitched the fox ears which made Todoroki's eyes twitch in turn.

Todoroki almost gritted his teeth. "No, I think those ears are perfect."

"Would you say they make me look cute?" whispered Amanda.

"You're very cute." stammered Todoroki, whose limits were being reached.

"Aw, thank you!" beamed Amanda, and when Todoroki realized what he had just said, his face turned into that of a toothy frown, his eyes confused like never before.

Amanda even noticed Todoroki beginning to sweat. "Here, let me get that for you."

She exercised control of her magical tail and brought it forward to Todoroki's face, brushing the sweat off of him while simultaneously making him even more nervous and unable to speak.

Amanda's face turned playful and hungry. "Oh, poor thing, you're shivering. You know, I read that foxes use their tails to help keep warm so let me help you with that."

Right before Todoroki could react, Amanda lunged forward and wrapped her tail around him, the surprise causing Todoroki to lose balance and trip. Had it been a villain, Todoroki would have stood tall, but this was a gal filling him with a whole plethora of emotions.

Luckily, Todoroki fell on the grass with kitsune-Amanda lying on top of him. As for her, she was right where she wanted them to be.

Amanda took some quick breaths, excited by the position they were in. Amanda had Todoroki seduced and pinned down, his icy exterior was broken simply because he didn't know how to handle himself around girls, which Amanda thought was the most precious and hottest thing ever.

She could feel his heart beating incredibly fast as she got a rise of him, and that wasn't even getting to a certain rise making his jeans tighter. She had her handsome boy seduced.

At that moment, Amanda gave her actions some thought and dropped her smirk. Todoroki certainly wasn't used to interactions like this, and Amanda began to think she was actually making him uncomfortable for real.

To see if she needed to stop, she raised her head and finally came face to face with Todoroki, and thankfully saw that he was grinning. It was a soft grin of course, but he was clearly enjoying it much to her relief. She did feel scared for a moment.

"You really are something." said Todoroki softly, but affectionately.

Amanda's smile returned, and this one was full of warmth. She brought her forehead down to Todoroki's, the two of them taking a deep breath.

This was her chance. Amanda knew she had developed feelings for him and this was the time to confess. It was perfect. The girl having pinned down the boy after making him all flustered? She was sure that a scene straight from romance novels she never bothered to read.

Right when she was about to raise her voice however, the two were reminded they were still in public.

"Get a room you two!" yelled a passersby.

Todoroki and Amanda both turned red and realized they were acting a little too out of line for where they were. The moment was ruined, but they were glad they had it.

Amanda stood up and got rid of the magical fox ears and tails while Todoroki began cleaning his outfit, only for Amanda to help take care of that with yet another spell.

After an awkward pause, Todoroki changed the subject, with him and Amanda both implicitly knowing that they were going to have to confront this moment and their tensions quite soon. Still, it didn't change the fact that Todoroki had a crucial assignment.

"So you were gonna pull a prank during the merc exposition?" he asked.

Amanda blinked slowly, and then nodded as she came back to reality. "I was. And you?"

Todoroki groaned. "My dad got word of what was happening in Appleton and is ordering me to scout the whole thing?"

"Scout?" frowned Amanda.

"He wants to see if he can get his own private soldiers beyond his hero agency to enforce his will and ability to stay the number one hero." explained Todoroki. He remembered Endeavor calling him before he fell asleep, starting out with yelling his name over the phone and then screaming his orders like a drill sergeant.

Amanda raised an eyebrow. "And you're gonna do it? I thought you didn't like him."

He shrugged simply, but his face turned bitter. "He hasn't been too happy that I've been spending this month with witches instead of getting tougher with the British special forces. Can I let you in on a secret?"

"Of course!" quickly said Amanda.

Todoroki hesitated for a moment before speaking. "A few days ago, he actually offered to get me out of the forced joint hero-witch course at Luna Nova by exercising his will. Just so I could actually train with the SAS."

"You and your classmates?" checked Amanda.

"No, just me because the last thing he wants is for Bakugou and Deku to catch up." told Todoroki.

"And you turned him down." realized Amanda.

"Yeah, because I began liking it at Luna Nova," revealed Todoroki. "And because I want to spend time with you."

"I...uhhh…" Amanda would've shed a tear of happiness if she wasn't so tough. Her warm thoughts however were interrupted by the subject at hand. "Hold on, so what does this have to do with that private military thing con?"

"My dad's threatening to come to Britain himself or send one of his goons, which is just as bad as having him here, if I don't go there myself and effectively represent him." explained Todoroki.

Amanda placed two hands on Todoroki's shoulders, catching him off guard. "Well, you ran into the right lass, because I think I'm gonna cap off my adventures in Appleton with the biggest spectacle in that school's history."

"Pranking a bunch of ultra rich types with armed soldiers and powerful quirks?" frowned Todoroki, trying not to have another heart attack.

She gave a mischievous smirk. "No way in hell does Appleton let anyone provide security besides their own, so we'll only be dealing with those rich blokes and the CEOs of the companies they wanna invest in. Hell, the army isn't even patrolling around to look for that loose villain."

Todoroki looked uncertain. "Don't know how my dad would react to this. Or everyone."

Amanda pushed herself closer to him. Turning his face redder than his hair and scar.

"Come on," insisted Amanda. "I have a pretty good plan. We won't get caught and I'm sure the embarrassment will stop your dad from pursuing his crazy dreams."

That notion of thwarting his father's plans sounded tempting Todoroki, just like Amanda's beautiful face. To have an adventure with her that would result in pissing off Endeavor was like killing two birds with one stone.

Todoroki tried to smile wide for once in his life. "Alright, I'm in."

Amanda gave an excited giggle and explained the plan.

After effortlessly sneaking past security, Amanda and Todoroki walked down the hall of Appleton where the officials from those pseudo mercenary groups were organizing. As Amanda stated, the security was at Appleton's normal levels, so their prank looked like it would proceed without a hitch.

And what a great prank it would be. Amanda had created a slightly complex, but surely doable plan of action which Todoroki was sure would even earn a laugh from him. The sheer magnificence of their prank would be talked about for decades to come, but what was most important was that they were going to do it together.

"And remember," said Amanda haughtily as they strode. "When we get out on my broom, make sure you hold me close because we're gonna be moving real fast."

Todoroki almost lost his breath. The thought of holding Amanda tight on her broom sounded like a dream come true. As for Amanda, it was the perfect moment to have another chance at confessing her crush. She could already picture herself making the getaway as Todoroki clinged onto her, and when they would gaze at their victory, she'd whisper in his ear and plant a kiss on his lips.

"I think I have it figured it out," muttered Todoroki who then looked down at the magical muffins they would have to give to one of the CEOs for their project to kick off. "But what will we do with all the racoons at the end?"

Amanda didn't even open her eyes as she walked confidently. "Ah, that's what the moose will be for."

"And what will happen to the moose?" inquired Todoroki.

"The Canadians will handle them." answered Amanda.

"And all those Canadians just hanging around Blytonburry?" he continued.

"They'll just die in the winter if they have no place to go." shrugged Amanda.

"Canadians...dying in the winter?" deadpanned Todoroki, making her reevaluate her statement.

Amanda's eyes finally shot open. "Oh….I didn't think about that. Eh, I'm sure the Brits will help their fellow anglos out."

"Right." sighed Todoroki, although he wasn't going to abandon his chance to spend time with Amanda to commit the prank of the century.

Amanda tapped Todoroki's shoulder and pointed to a door. "Alright, that sign says Cynthia is staying there."

"She was the CEO of Global Heaven?" checked Todoroki.

"Yeah," confirmed Amanda. "So she'll be waiting in the conference hall, so all we gotta do is plant these muffins and then…"

Amanda once again was proven instantly wrong by the sound of a voice that belonged to none other than Cynthia. The hero and witch instantly froze in place, confused and shocked by the fact that she was still waiting in her room rather than getting ready to present.

The prank was in jeopardy. The door to Cynthia's room was open, and a conversation between her and a man was playing out. Todoroki and Amanda weren't particularly loud while walking the halls and there was still some distance to her door, so they were evidently unnoticed.

Todoroki began whispering. "What do we do?"

Amanda bit her lip and tried to form a new plan. "Maybe we can..."

And then, the two began overhearing the conversation Cynthia was having after one particular line got to them.

The man's voice rang. "There are still some SAS buggers around the area, but you'll be fine right?"

Cynthia replied without any worry. "Don't worry, I could stand in front of them forever and they'll still be unable to recognize who I am. They literally cannot."

Amanda and Todoroki, overwhelmed by curiosity and the sense of danger, tried creeping closer to listen in.

"Your memory alteration spell runs that deep?" asked the man.

"Indeed," replied Cynthia. "As far as they know, they're chasing after a woman with a quirk, not a witch, and one who looks exactly nothing like me. They're chasing that drawing O'Duffy made for us when I bailed from Hereford."

The man didn't sound too pleased. "For someone that can alter memory, why did you still give them something to chase? Doesn't sound like the best way to…"

Cynthia interrupted him. "Casting a spell that changes the mind of everyone in the SAS and MI6 is one of the hardest fucking things I had to do in my life. I vanished with all those assets to start our company and God knows what sort of paper trail I left behind during my service. There would be gaps if I just wiped myself from their memories, and I am not risking my spell being broken by those gaps."

A chuckle came out of the man. "And you're sure none of the blokes here would have their memory jogged by your appearance? I'm sure they have ties to the SAS or MI6."

Now it was Cynthia's turn to sound angry. "That was YOUR job to check the seating order. Still, having to alter the memories and records of practically every business partner I run into to disguise my lost years in the army is getting tiring. We need to have those boys on our side NOW."

Then the man said something that made Todoroki's heart skip a beat. "Well luckily, they landed right in front of us."

Amanda gasped, thankfully placing her hands on her lips right before the sound left her mouth. They were clearly talking about the heroes.

Todoroki meanwhile stood solid in shock. This woman was clearly the villainous maniac the SAS were looking for with their various patrols and checkpoints in Britain. The enigmatic villain didn't even have a quirk, nor did she look like what the public thought she did. And she was right in front of the hapless witch and hero.

A part of Todoroki wanted to charge her instantly and force her to confess, but someone having the ability to alter memories with a spell was just something he didn't know how to deal with. It seemed what was just a typical business woman had a power that could turn All Might in his prime into One For All with just a flick of her wand.

Cynthia continued. "Anyway, can you at least confirm that Todoroki is showing up here? He's the one we'd need the most now."

"Positive," confirmed the man. "Two extra seats too."

"For his friends?" inquired Cynthia.

"Nah, his father made the purchase so I'm sure he did that so little Shoto wouldn't have anyone sitting next to him." laughed the man.

"Of course," giggled Cynthia, before turning serious. "People like Endeavor are why we need to do this. All these politicians, heroes and mages...they're stuck in the past. I don't expect Todoroki to jump to our boat, but if his father hires us we'll have a foot in Japan."

"The land of heroes huh. Still, you can't just alter his memory? Sneak up on him?" asked the man.

"No, because first, Todoroki clearly clings to the old ways and I can't just have him turn out of the blue," inferred Cynthia. "Him, Bakugou and Deku need to have their opinions about hero society changed organically, and a domino effect should arise since they're the most famous young heroes in Japan. We still need our foothold in the country first."

"And is reason 2 being you're worried about SAS investigation?" guessed the man.

"I got cocky by trying to alter that hero's memories," groaned Cynthia. Evidently, that specific event was what caused the recent SAS patrols. "That ritual I used to infect the British special forces took a lot out of me, so no memory alteration outside of businessmen."

"Even if we're caught? I don't think the army is backing down soon." asked the man.

"I insist on using legal and non-lethal means," said Cynthia, who sounded offended by the idea. "We need to show we're better than the old forces, and while I can trip the memory of everyone chasing us immediately, all I can really do is probably make them suicidal or turn on each other. Until then, no gore please."

"Sure. Hopefully this chucklefuck doesn't badmouth us to his dad." stated the man.

"As if Endeavor would even listen Nicholas," replied Cynthia, revealing the man's name. "I look forward to being bought by him."

Todoroki and Amanda had tried to distance themselves from the room while trying to listen in on everything at the same time.

It was just too much to take in. The villain on the loose was a witch who was making a fortune for herself, was ex spec ops and clearly had a bunch of stolen materials to give her organization serious firepower. The worst part was the spell she specialized in.

Memory alteration was deadly. If someone believed they were something else, who knew what they could be driven to do. And apparently Cynthia knew how to screw up the minds of an entire elite intelligence community to cover her tracks. It was little wonder why she'd be hired to serve it, although we she left for some lofty ideals seemed unclear to Amanda and Todoroki.

The two immediately began darting for the other side, hoping they wouldn't be caught, and for once, something went their way.

Todoroki and Amanda managed to exit the halls where the heads of the mercenary companies were supposed to be staying and found the auditorium where a large number of guests were listening to Oswald, head of White Wolves enterprises, give out some speech.

The two weren't particularly interested in what he was saying, other than him going off on some tangent about his company was expanding its catering section and was looking into making colorful burgers. Clearly, some fool had too much money to spend.

While they wanted to return to Luna Nova ASAP, the desire to see what Cynthia would say overpowered them. Knowing an enemy was important. Second, Endeavor would have certainly figured out if Todoroki skipped the conference, and that was something he feared as much as the mind altering witch.

Right as they were about to take their seats, they noticed Andrew and Frank sitting on one of the isles, Frank of course taking the initiative to greet them.

"Hey guys!" whispered Frank. "Didn't know you'd be here."

Todoroki tried to play it cooly. "Well, I didn't want to be here."

"Your dad?" muttered Andrew, still staring blankly at Oswald's enigmatic presentation about how his mercs knew tailoring.

Amanda placed her hands on his hips. "Of course it's his dad."

Frank laughed. "Yeah, our dads are sceptical about these private companies, but they're making us attend anyway. Whatcha gonna do eh?"

"And why are you here?" asked Andrew.

Amanda casually wrapped her arm around Todoroki, flustering him again while his thoughts lingered about Cynthia. "Someone needs moral support. It'd be torture for him to go at it alone."

"Aw, you're such a great friend." complimented Frank.

Todoroki and Amanda glanced at each other and gave each other a warm smile, both knowing they wanted to be more than friends, but had a slightly bigger priority to worry about at the moment.

Andrew finally eyed the two and raised an eyebrow. "Are those muffins?"

They had completely forgotten about their masterful prank, which would have started with the magical muffins being eaten by Cynthia. Now, they were thankful the prank wouldn't go through and piss off someone who could wipe their memories or change it without them ever being the wiser.

Todoroki found a garbage near the bin and without saying anything, threw them all away. At least no one in Appleton was dumb enough to eat muffins straight from the garbage.

Frank looked disappointed. "Oh man, those looked good."

"Trust me, they weren't." assured Amanda as Todoroki returned.

Andrew's intuition kicked in, figuring there was more to the muffins than the two let on, but he also noticed that Amanda and Todoroki weren't as nonchalant as they usually were. "Okay, you two look like you've seen a ghost."

This was normally when either would have said 'you have no idea', but that would be giving too much. They didn't want anyone confronting Cynthia, lest they figured out a way around someone who could overpower minds in an instant.

Amanda figured she'd come clean about the prank to ward off suspicion. "We were gonna do something really funny, especially with those muffins, but Todoroki talked me out of it."

Andrew looked sceptical, but nodded. To him, it at least explained why Todoroki and Amanda looked a bit sulken.

Frank gave some encouragement. "I'm sure it would've been hilarious."

An usher came up to them. "You two! Take your seats dammit."

Todoroki grabbed Amanda's hand and began guiding her to their reserved locations. "See you guys later." he muttered to Andrew and Frank, who returned the friendly gesture.

They took their seats and waited for Oswald to finish off his drivel, which now consisted of magic nano machines and walking tanks that could fire nukes. At least he was entertaining compared to Norah, head of Warriors Without Borders, whose speech was pretty dry and uninteresting.

As Norah spoke however, Todoroki and Amanda noticed Cynthia enter the stage and quietly take her seat, a man who was clearly Nicholas behind her.

Of course, Nicholas was wearing a sort of armor that looked like an altered version of what the SAS was wearing when they were doing patrols, and obviously that was no coincidence.

A mountain of anxiety had fell upon the two of them as they waited to see what Cynthia would have to say when she would speak. All the while they desperately tried to think of plans of action against her. What worried them the most was that sending powerful people to someone who had a ton of fire power and intelligence would only give Cynthia another minion to her arsenal, making them thank God that she was going for a more merciful route to bring about some change they couldn't understand.

As Cynthia finally took her turn at the podium, speaking as like just a normal business woman, Amanda noticed Todoroki's hand shaking. Despite his cool exterior, he was clearly afraid of Cynthia's power. And why wouldn't he?

She could read what was going on in Todoroki's mind. There was the fear of this woman being able to unleash untold spells to wreak havoc if she got caught. There was the fear of him and Amanda being brainwashed into doing something they didn't want to, which included being forced to hurt each other.

They knew the truth, but they simply didn't know how to act, lest Cynthia damn the minds of everyone with her powerful magic.

Staying brave, Amanda's hand reached Todoroki's, stopping it from shaking quickly. The second their hands touched, Todoroki blinked and took a deep breath, revelling in the sensation as he still continued to watch Cynthia with fake interest.

Just to keep his spirits up, Amanda quickly brought her lips towards his cheek and planted a quick kiss to assure him that everything would be alright.

And just like that, it worked. Todoroki clearly calmed down and strengthened his grip on Amanda's hand, almost like it was a vow that he would never let go or let harm come to her.

While their moments to confess their love had indeed been ruined by a series of misfortunate events, Amanda figured she could at least rest her head on his elbow. As Todoroki caught Amanda's scent and nuzzled her back, he forgot about the villain in front of him and focused on the witch beside him.


	16. Magical Fusion Class Part 1

_**Author's note: The previous chapter was updated a few days ago to expand on Todoroki and Amanda's relationship. The first chapter has also been rewritten, but keeps the central premise without changing anything in the story.** _

Another session of broom flying class went by. The witches waited patiently for Diana and the heroes to return from the air. While all the witches had shown a slight improvement in dodging the heroes' attacks, most of the combat was in favor of the UA students.

The exceptions were Diana and Amanda of course, whose progress always rendered the heroes too tired to do any other physical activity for the rest of the day. Akko on the other hand still maintained perfect flight and evasion skills for some unknown reasons if quirks were being shot at her, and thus the heroes refused to fight her.

Thus, Akko was always left bored during the class, having long gotten over the humor in seeing the other witches who mocked her flying ability annihilated by quirks.

"Come on! When is she coming back down." complained Akko.

Amanda slapped her shoulder. "Quit whining, I can see her."

"And the guys?" asked Akko.

Amanda squinted. "Just barely hanging on, literally."

Diana flew towards the witches an annoyed expression, as the exhausted heroes were sharing her broom. Bakugou had his arms around her, who would have loved the gesture if Bakugou wasn't a sweating mess. There was just enough room for the fatigued Todoroki and Deku as well, Diana having the foresight to use a larger broom.

Diana landed and the heroes disembarked, the witches realizing how overwhelming the chase against Diana, especially after an equally demanding confrontation with Amanda, had been. All three of them were panting and sweating, their eyes open with exhaustion.

By contrast, most of the witches just had a burn or bruise mark that would go away after a few hours.

Sucy took a shot at them. "Say something if you're still alive."

Bakugou raised his middle finger to her and tried to speak, only for nothing but gibberish to come out of his mouth in between gags and breathing.

"Wow, you got him to shut up for once." muttered Amanda to Diana, though the latter looked concerned, having never seen the heroes this out of it, even if she took pride in her improvement.

Professor Nelson rushed over. "Get them water now!"

Diana casted a spell to levitate three water bottles which the heroes grabbed quickly and joyously gulped down.

Deku, tried to communicate. "M-m-mo...mo"

"He wants more!" realized Amanda, prompting fast nods from him.

Nelson transfigured the water bottles into larger buckets, and Diana complimented her action with a spell that filled the buckets to the top with icy cold water.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" asked Akko, watching the heroes with a frown.

"Help by not doing anything." snarked Amanda.

The boys drank from the buckets before Todoroki dumped his head in his to cool off, a motion his classmates repeated.

Diana raised an eyebrow and looked at Amanda. "Just how bad did we...we…"

Diana's voice trailed off as she heard the sound of the heroes taking off their shirts drenched with sweat, revealing their impressive physiques. The witches that weren't Nelson, Constanze and Sucy gasped in awe. Everyone knew the heroes were jacked, but seeing their bodies was another spectacle entirely.

Then they dumped all the cold water down their body, causing the witches who gasped to begin blushing profoundly as they witnessed the bodies of the UA boys glow in the sunlight.

"They really eat their protein don't they?" mused Jasminka.

Akko, Diana and Amanda of course, felt more than just embarrassing, but the other witches were only okay with the heroes no matter how much they appreciated their aesthetic. As for the trio, they were witnessing something akin to Olympic Gods relieving themselves after giving them the fight of a lifetime.

Sure the heroes looked pathetic, but their history and the emotions they had shared with their guides caused the three witches to feel twitchy on the inside. Nelson realized what they were really thinking with their lustful gazes, already aware of their crushes, and sighed.

Todoroki noticed how they were thinking and began blushing himself, the other two heroes once more following his lead as they followed his gaze. An awkward pause between the two parties ensued.

Regardless, Deku spoke up, oblivious to the implications of his words. "Guys, don't your pants feel really sticky and all that?"

"I guess." shrugged Todoroki.

"Yeah, they a need a fucking wash." agreed Bakugou.

Right as the heroes tugged on their pants to remove them, Akko suddenly heard Bakugou's voice called out, even though the Bakugou in front of her wasn't moving his lips.

"GET THE FUCK UP!"

"FUCKING GET UP!"

"Kaachan! Stop it!"

"Yeah, this is too much."

"FUCK OFF BOTH OF YOU."

Akko jolted awake to find herself in her dorm with the three UA boys all dressed up and looking normal, surrounding her. She realized that she was dreaming about the heroes in the aftermath of a broom flying class that never happened, as much as she wanted it to.

She turned just as red as she was in her dream, hoping that the heroes didn't realize what she had been thinking about as she slept. Had she been woken up a few seconds later, the guys would've walked in on her saying and perhaps even doing some inappropriate things.

Akko wasn't a stranger to such experiences, having had dreams about Andrew and certain others over the last year, but this was her first sexual fantasy about the heroes. Luckily for her, those three were too busy arguing to realize the implications.

Akko rolled her eyes and yelled to get their attention. "What are you guys doing?"

Deku shot her an excited look. "We're waking you up for Fusion Magic Class! Sounds fun!"

Akko's eyes widened. "Nooo! That's a second period class, I missed potions!"

"Chill the fuck out," hastily said Bakugou. "That Lukic bitch knew you had a shit ton of extra work, so she let you sleep rather than cause a major fuck up."

Todoroki encouraged her. "You didn't miss much. Lukic wouldn't let Sucy do anything that would provoke a reaction from him." Todoroki glanced at Bakugou, who scowled at him.

"Alright I guess." muttered Akko. After she set the kitchen on fire the other day during culinary class and failed to report it, she had been given multiple assignments that forced her to work extra hours in the night. She still had more to go.

Another thing puzzled Akko. "Are Sucy and Lotte headed to class?"

"Yeah, so Sucy sent us to get you." mused Deku innocently.

"She did?" Akko's face almost turned angry. She felt that Sucy knew she'd be having erotic dreams about the heroes and probably set them up for an ambush. Then again, Akko reassured herself otherwise by noting that she'd done a good job hiding her more awkward aspect whenever she fantasized about Andrew.

It seemed more likely Sucy sent the heroes over so Bakugou could wake her up like a drill sergeant, which certainly was the case.

Akko shrugged. "Whatever then."

As she stretched and took off her blanket, Deku eyed the Scorbunny plush next to her, utterly touched that she kept it close.

Deku pointed to it as he caught Akko's attention. "Heh, you really like it, don't you?"

She glanced at the Scorbunny and smiled as she hugged it close. "I do! Thank you so much for winning him Deku! He's the best."

Deku's mouth hung agape as she stared at Akko cuddling the stuffed doll. Getting her that plush lead to him receiving his first kiss on the cheek from Akko, the first he received from a girl that wasn't his mother of course. And speaking of his mother, Deku couldn't help but be reminded of her.

Maybe it was her ponytail or hair style, but Deku thought about how his mother would embrace him like how Akko did with the Scorbunny. Hell, he also remembered how Akko held him when he got turned into a four year old a few days back. The entire sight of seeing Akko so cute, yet motherly, really drove his hormones.

His frozen stare was interrupted by Bakugou of course.

"Hurry the fuck up and change so we can get to class! And stop staring at your girlfriend Deku so she can move her ass!" he roared.

Deku's and Akko's eyes shrunk as they both blurted. "Girlfriend?"

Todoroki saved face by opening the door and stepping out. "You two coming?"

Deku sprinted to the exit to let Akko get dressed while Bakugou stomped on behind him. His heart beat quickly, and he was certain that the same was happening to his two classmates and the witches they were close to.

Bakugou slammed Akko's door shut as Deku gulped, trying to think about academics again which tended to shut down the other parts of his mind.

"So, any idea what fusion magic class is gonna be like?" asked Deku.

Todoroki raised his eyebrows. "Weren't you the one eager to read about magic and Luna Nova on our first night here?"

Deku shrugged. "Yeah, but other than a vague idea of what fusion magic is, I haven't really read that much into it since I can't find anything online given that magical society doesn't have that much presence on the web. And the books I had didn't go into too much detail, but the librarian wouldn't let me in to learn about fusion magic since…"

Diana's sudden appearance cut off Deku's rambling. "There you three are!"

Amanda of course joined her. "We hurried up as soon as Sucy spilled the beans."

Bakugou stood tall, slightly annoyed. "Do you always have to follow us?"

Amanda crept closer to him. "Hey, I don't wanna take any risks with whatever Finnelan's definition of guiding and supervision and all that crap is."

"Furthermore, we need to escort you all to where class is." pointed Diana.

"But Akko could just show us the way." said Deku confusedly.

"Imagine trusting her." snickered Amanda.

Diana smiled devilishly to Bakugou. "Besides, don't you enjoy our company at this point."

Bakugou was cut off guard, almost making him drop his confrontational demeanor. "I mean I do. We fucking went over this."

"So I fail to see the complaint." remarked Todoroki, noticing Amanda was giving him the same look.

At this point, all parties were aware of their feelings for each other, even Bakugou and Diana who were still trying to convince themselves otherwise. Even amongst the other four, a mixture of hesitance and pride engulfed their willingness to confess and that wasn't even getting to Amanda and Todoroki getting side tracked by their discovery the previous day.

Just then, Akko entered the hallway and joined the rest, all dressed up and ready to go.

"Ah, if it isn't the kitchen nightmare." snarked Amanda.

Akko pouted, knowing the fire was going to haunt her for the next week. "Very funny."

Diana folded her arms and turned to Amanda. "Speaking of nightmares, what were you doing yesterday with Todoroki? I saw you two return together."

Amanda and Todoroki glanced at each other. Evidently Amanda had kept her excursion to Appleton under wraps, which worked as part of their initiative to not drag anyone to the villain lest they get their mind wiped.

"Weren't you going to go see what those private armies were offering for your dad?" remembered Deku.

Todoroki kept his face from cracking. "I was."

"And I get the feeling that you were trying to cause trouble Amanda?" accused Diana.

Amanda shrugged. "I was, but he talked me out of it."

Diana was about to raise her voice, but moved on, leading the others to class. "Digressing, let's not be late I suppose."

Amanda and Todoroki let their classmates go on ahead a good few paces while they quietly discussed their turn of events. She tugged on his arm to halt him to ensure that they would go unheard.

"Any word from your dad?" asked Amanda.

"He's thinking about making a purchase for some mercs to head to Japan. Wouldn't say which company. In any case Japan needs to work some laws and I just figured my dad will do the opposite of what I suggest anyway." explained Todoroki.

Amanda rolled her eyes. "I got you there. The more you say no, the bigger his ego gets."

Todoroki nodded and bit his lip in defeat. His father having an army in Japan after centuries of the nation's conventional one being practically non existent in the age of heroes worried him. "I still think it's best we not send anyone to Cynthia's way because looking at her company's arsenal, I'd be surprised if she didn't have this school bugged."

"Right, and I for one would rather not have false memories that make me suicidal or turn on you. I'm sure we can find someone to work this out." stated Amanda.

Just then, Bakugou yelled at the two from across the hall. "Hey! Are fuckers done already."

Akko slapped his shoulder. "Give them their moment jeez."

Amanda and Todoroki realized they had been talking for longer than they had intended, and obviously their classmates noted quickly.

As far as Deku, Akko, Diana and Bakugou knew, Amanda and Todoroki were just having an intimate moment, and they weren't too far off. Once the two rejoined the group, no one demanded to know what was being said, quelling their fears.

At this point, the two groups of students were waiting to see who would confess to each other first, even if they pretended otherwise. All three of the witches had pretty much developed sexual feelings for the heroes as well, while those three were still effectively working out handling their feelings regarding women akin to a delayed puberty.

Diana spoke up to kill the silence. "I hope you three are aware you aren't off the hook after your roughhousing in the dining hall, because I heard you'll be receiving your sentence this period."

With all the attention focused on Akko's fire, almost everyone had forgotten that the heroes themselves had engaged in malicious acts. Bakugou broke Sucy's nose in retaliation for her potioning him, Todoroki froze Bakugou to give Amanda's cooking some praise and Deku knocked out his two classmates out to do the same for Akko.

While the professors of Luna Nova had given up on trying to restrain the boys since day one, not paid enough to handle their crap, Badcock's horrible mood after the fire and the death of her magical restaurant pitch caused her to take an extra initiative.

Bakugou remained haughty, blowing it off like no big deal. "Whatever, what the fuck are they gonna do to us anyway?"

Amanda raised her eyebrows. "Buddy, it's a magic school, there are a shit ton of things they can do to you."

Deku tried to stay positive. "Eh, all Sucy had to do was write a paper, I'm sure we'll be fine."

Amanda placed a hand on his shoulder, flustering Deku. "Uh, physically assaulting your two pals with your quirks is a whole other league of punishment compared to turning someone's skin green."

"Evidently, nothing elicits a professors hatred more than kitchen fire." observed Todoroki, whose remark got a laugh out of Bakugou, Diana and Amanda, even though he wasn't joking.

Diana's next statement however got everyone jumpy again. "Just be glad that they didn't cancel your invitation to 'The Dance With The Witches'."

Diana's placed a hand on her mouth once she realized what she had said, given the subject matter and the atmosphere between her classmates at the UA students.

Akko gasped. "Oh yeah! So glad I can still go with Lotte and Sucy."

Deku slowly raised a finger. "What's 'The Dance With The Witches'."

Amanda paused moving, and so did the others as she explained, her face sheepish. "It's this gala they have where the Appleton boys ask us Luna Nova Witches out for a night. Petty fru fru pretentious kind of crap only Diana could enjoy."

Diana stomped her feet. "I'll have you know that it's nothing but a waste of time when either of our schools would be better off studying instead of worrying about popularity and looks. I assume that you heroes wouldn't be the type of people to enjoy such ludicrous festivities as well?"

The heroes eyed each other nervously, all equally confused. The event sounded rather big if it combined two elite schools, making them wonder why it hadn't been brought up.

It made sense to them that Amanda and Diana would have cared less for a dance, and the fact that they had only really spent time with them and the evidently forgetful Akko at least explained why they had been kept out of the dark.

Deku spoke first. "I..I never really went to that kind of dance before. I mean there was that gala on that island a while back but we got interrupted by villains, so….yeah…"

Bakugou figured he had nothing to lose since Diana had no intention of attending. "Yeah, it ain't my shit."

Todoroki closed his eyes and nodded. "Likewise."

Amanda placed her hands behind her hands behind her head. "Well, I guess anyone that isn't Akko here will probably just skip the damn thing."

Akko glared at her, but to Deku's frustration, she didn't immediately proclaim that he would be attending the dance too, which would implicitly be her asking him out.

He gulped as he lost himself in mumbling thoughts. ' _Oh man, did Akko ask Andrew out to this thing weeks before I even showed up to Luna Nova? I mean, the entire premise of the dance is for Appleton and Luna Nova students to get together which is weird because I thought they were anti-magic, but Andrew and Akko clearly have some sort of spark. Logically speaking, Andrew is a wonderfully attractive man that I would ask out in a heartbeat if I was Akko before any other witch did, and Andrew clearly should know about the effects of his appearances on others, so he would seek Akko out too and…"_

The mental mutterings were interrupted as Akko raised an eyebrow while she stared at the nervous boy. "Um, Deku?"

Deku's snapped back to reality again and thought of an excuse. "Oh, um I thought the Appleton guys really hated witches."

Amanda, an expert on all things Appleton due to her escapades, answered his concerns. "Well, all the non witchy girls our age are at another school a city away, so those dorks have to cut their shit for a night if they want anything close to a date."

Diana shrugged. "It's one of the three nights where we bury the hatchet."

The witches and heroes stared at each other. They knew how awkward the topic was, and yet couldn't move on. At that point it felt as if one side was waiting for the other to make the first move in asking them out on a date. However, Bakugou's and Diana's egos and insistence on denial, Todoroki and Amanda's self proclaimed indifference, and finally, Deku's unwillingness to find out if Akko had asked Andrew out prevented anyone from speaking up.

Todoroki asked another question. "What are the other two nights your schools get along?"

"Our and their school play respectively." quickly replied Diana.

Bakugou looked surprised. "Huh, coulda sworn this was the type of school where you just crossdress if you needed males for that shit."

Todoroki quickly looked at Amanda, who eyed him back and shook her head.

"Nah, that's an overdone gimmick." she quickly remarked, hoping to bury any suspicion of what she did at Appleton.

For once, Akko was the one who brought others back to reality. "Uh guys, aren't we forgetting something?"

Diana's mouth dropped as she clenched her fists. "Oh God, we're gonna be late for fusion class." This was the reason she hoped she would never be distracted by such intimate and suggestive topics before reaching her twenties. It was just an obstacle to her dream of achieving magical perfection.

But then again she realized, wasn't she drawn to Bakugou because he felt the same about being a hero? Their respect for each other was based entirely on being the best, so Diana at least took comfort in the fact that he wouldn't let her slip.

He himself looked just as strained as she did, and had no intention of being late.

Bakugou groaned. "Fuck it. Run."

"What?" blurted Akko.

"RUN!" yelled Bakugou, this time issuing it as a command.

The heroes made a dash for it, with the witches trailing behind. Quirks or not, the heroes were still in adept physical condition, while only Amanda had an athletic build amongst the witches.

Diana loathed running in the halls, but the literal rush of the situation forced her to do otherwise. Her increased workouts over the last few weeks at least allowed her to fare better than the panting and outpaced Akko.

Luckily, they managed to arrive at the door of the class when all the other witches were, slowing down a bit to avoid a collision with someone else.

Of course, Sucy had to have noticed them coming in. "Was she that much of a pain to get up?"

"Fuck off." hissed Bakugou, who stepped in front of her to enter the classroom.

"Are you gonna participate in this class?" asked Todoroki, checking to see if he should keep his guard up.

Sucy's face turned sulken. "Nope, fusion class involves potions. Consider yourselves lucky."

Akko on the other hand was elated. "Woohoo! Nothing's gonna happen to me."

Amanda nudged her in the room. "Yeah, you're probably not allowed to touch anything too."

Everyone took their seats, with Akko, Diana and Amanda forced to sit together as per the regulations for the month, specifically next to table the heroes were at which of course had no items on it.

Once everyone was settled in, there was silence, with most of the tension between being the heroes and the professor teaching the class, who was none other than Finnelan herself.

Finnelan was one of the more vocal professors about the heroes' presence at Luna Nova, likening them to an entire trio of Akkos or Amandas in their capacity to cause trouble. For the most part they had avoided contact, but this week, it was her turn to teach the second period class.

One of Finnelan's courses was magic linguistics, which like Badcock's second period course of numerology, was something the heroes skipped. Today's course was Magical Fusion class however, which could invoke quirks in its curriculum, much to Finnelan's to dismay.

The professor gazed at the boys, with only Bakugou of course showing her any signs of hostility. True he had no longer thought ill of magic, but no teacher at Luna Nova was under the impression they were going to win his respect within a month.

Finnelan rolled her eyes and greeted the students. "Good morning, today marks the first time we shall be focusing on using magical fusion techniques on quirks, with our hero guests being our test subjects for the class."

The heroes weren't as shocked as they could have been. They were used to being tested on at this point during potions or cooking class. This was just another round.

Deku raised his hand.

"Yes?" snapped Finnelan.

"So magical fusion is when mages are combine their magic to cast more powerful spells, so how would this work with quirks which are more physical abilities?" asked Deku.

"That's what we're here to find out," shrugged Finnelan. "I think you three boys are already insanely powerful enough as it, but there are multiple methods we use to induce fusion amongst witches, so I believe we can achieve something."

Bakugou didn't even bother to raise his hand. "Ma'am, there's no way I'm ever gonna be in sync with these two idiots. That's like asking Akko and Diana to do it."

"Hey!" yelled Akko.

"I fail to see the lie though." muttered Diana, which elicited similar mummers amongst the class.

"You are in absolutely no condition to argue young man," scolded Finnelan. "And I strongly suggest refraining from any further comments if you wish to take part in the class excursion this Friday night?"

Everyone's eyes widened.

Lotte sprang to attention. "What excursion? Like a trip?"

Finnelan closed her eyes. "Yes, Professor Ursula has found it suitable to take the entire class on an outing to Bath, which obviously is famous for its hot springs. I trust the four students from Japan here find it similar to what you call...an onsen?"

The mouths of the heroes dropped out of sheer surprise. They nodded to confirm the similarity to an onsen trip. Now, the boys had already been on onsen trips with the girls from UA, who were of course separated on their own side, as would be the case on Luna Nova's trip.

It didn't take a genius, however, to realize that this specific trip meant something else entirely for not just the hero trio, but the three witches they were obviously crushing on and vice versa.

Even Diana's stoic exterior started to fade upon thinking about the idea of Bakugou wrapped in a towel or naked in a hot spring. She quickly tried to remove the thought from her head. Ironically, Bakugou tried to do the same when he pictured a naked Diana.

And then Sucy had to raise her own voice. "So just Professor Ursula will be taking us?"

"Yes, the rest of us are too old for that nonsense but don't for a second think that gives you a green light to do SOMETHING to the hot spring water just because she's more lenient." said Finnelan.

Bakugou, Deku and Todoroki then quickly eyed each other as their attention shifted to Urusula of all people. The three of them secretly knew about Ursula's true identity as Chariot, and one thing was all on their mind, their first childhood crush's curvy naked body in steaming water. Yet another picture to drive them further into their delayed puberty.

Finnelan noted their blushing red faces, as did Akko, Diana and Amanda. While no one was the wiser about Ursula's secret amongst the magical faction, it was common knowledge that Ursula's toned and voluptuous body was a goal to achieve.

Before letting any of the jealous three witches do something, Finnelan knocked her knuckles on the podium to rally everyone's attention. "I know you all are...excited, but we have a lesson to get through. We will now all be attempting to induce fusion of the boys' quirks through the methods I have outlined on your tables. If you feel that the methods are impossible for your group to achieve, move onto another one."

As the class got to work, preferring not to think about the destructive outcomes about fusing the quirks of heroes with interesting characters, Todoroki raised his concerns. "Is this safe? It's all untested after all."

Finnelan shot him a confused look. "Has that question ever stopped anyone in a hero or magical school before?"

"Well I'd rather die than have my quirks fuse with these two fuckers." admitted Bakugou.

Finnelan face palmed. "Such insolence and a lack of cohesion! Back in North Africa we knew how to work as a team and command respect."

The heroes and witches knew where this was going and all yelled a collective "NOOOOO!"

Finnelan ignored them and continued. "In the deserts of the Maghreb me and my unit had nothing but each other as we were detained by the Italian army. One of my subordinates suggested we use wandless fusion magic to bust out while the guards were distracted by getting Erwin Rommel's signature."

"And you did that?" interrupted Deku, hoping to end the flashback early.

"NO!" denied Finnelan. "It was too dangerous so I ordered everyone to sit tight and reminiscence about Gaelic Runes. Some Corporal tried to talk about how learning Gaelic Runes lead to a most scandalous encounter before I forced him to change the subject back to the Runes and only that. Unfortunately, those horny witches and wizards felt that was the last straw and tried to use wandless fusion magic anyway while I tried to stop them!"

"And you won right?" hoped Todoroki.

"Those Italians gunned down my entire platoon," contradicted Finnelan who paused for a long time as the entire room collectively stared at her. "I haven't been the same ever since."

Amanda whispered in Akko's ear. "That explains everything."

As Finnelan's hero-induced flashback prevented her from paying full attention, Sucy had used the time to secretly tamper with that Hannahand Barbara were setting up, despite her only being allowed to observe.

She would have her revenge for not being able to take part in any of her favourite activities.

For the next half hour, the witches continued mixing potions or refining spells in a way that they hoped, or rather hoped not, would lead to the heroes fusing their quirks in some way. The UA trio of course merely stared at their phones, which given the alternative of having to actually supervise three boys she found a burden, Finnelan allowed.

Finally, Finnelan cast a spell that sounded off an alarm to alert the witches that time was up, and that the heroes would be tested against their will.

"Alright, it's time for us to see the results of your labor," announced Finnelan. "Any witch willing to go first?"

Diana naturally raised her hand first, eager to show off what she hand done. She glanced at Bakugou, having caught his attention.

The two looked into each other's eyes for a brief moment before Diana shot him a slightly smug half smile. She knew that he loathed being used as a guinea pig for magic-quirk experiments, but that he also considered her to be the best magical kind had to offer. If there was anyone whose judgement he could trust, it was her, and Diana of course would trust her own judgement before any of the other witch's anyway.

As expected, Bakugou returned the arrogant half-smile as a go ahead. He was sure that Diana prevented Akko and Amanda from doing something stupid.

Finnelan however, had another idea. "While I trust that you performed above expectations as usual Diana, it would be useful for us to see if any of the alternative methods have any value before we dwell on the inevitable success."

Diana looked insulted, and while she could see the logic in that statement, she still wished to overlook what would be an inevitable failure in her eyes.

The other witches looked terrified. They had totally relied on Diana going first as usual to save themselves from humiliation given that they were experimenting in totally new territory, or at least the wrath of Bakugou should any of their solutions result in something abhorrent. Finnelan

had evidently realized this.

Sucy took this as the opportune time to enact revenge, and started it by pinching Hannah on the back.

"Ah!" shrieked Hannah.

Finnelan raised her eyebrows. "I see we have a volunteer."

The color drained from Hannah and Barbara's faces as they were completely uncertain about what their fusion potion would do, still ignorant about Sucy's tampering. Sucy herself kept a straight face on to ward off suspicion, but the heroes knew Hannah's shriek had to come from somewhere.

Barbara took the initiative in bringing the three vials of the potion to the heroes, quite slowly given her hesitance in approaching Bakugou.

Surprisingly though, he didn't shoot her a death glare. Deep down, he felt that if he was going to get along with Diana, then he needed to at least feign respect for her friends, even though he had never hung out with any of the witches besides her, Akko and Amanda.

Barbara tried to string words together. "Um, the way that this works is that all three of you have to drink the potion and um...uh...maybe you use your quirks...they'll fuse...or combine...or something I don't know."

"It's alright!" assured Deku. "Science is all about trial, error and repeats."

"I'll see this out." Todoroki shot Sucy a dirty look, but otherwise took the initiative in being the first person to drink his potion, followed by Deku and Bakugou.

For a few seconds nothing happened, everyone waiting in anticipation.

Akko clenched her fists. "Are you guys feeling okay?"

"I don't feel different." shook Deku.

Amanda took a step forward in their direction. "Maybe you should use your quirks?"

Diana agreed. "Yes, fusion magic comes about when mages are casting spells, so logically magically induced quirk fusion should work when you're using your own powers."

"Alright dipshits, on my count." ordered Bakugou.

Finnelan was quick to react. "LOW POWER ONLY. No frozen classrooms or anything like that."

"Yeah yeah yeah." groaned Bakugou.

"I'm ready." confidently said Deku.

Todoroki took a deep breath. "Same."

Bakugou readied his hands. "Quirks on three. One...two….three!"

They fired their powers, and then a bright light engulfed the room.


	17. Fusion class part 2: Dekuman Crybaby

The witches covered their eyes once the flash sparked from the bodies of the heroes. Considering all their troubles began when Akko's misfired spell caused a bright light to appear, everybody was dreading what would be the result of this experiment.

As if that wasn't enough, the blinding flash was met with a shockwave which sent the students a few steps back and ruffled their uniforms and hair. Even worse, the witches could hear vials breaking and various potions mixing together to fuse various substances that shouldn't have been fused in such a chaotic environment.

When everyone regained their vision, all they saw of the heroes was a thick smoke that obscured where they were standing, with no noise from the heroes coming from it.

"DEKU!" yelled Akko at the top of her lungs, beginning to shiver fearfully. She had her own long list of close encounters, and she knew the heroes did so too, but it didn't take away from how the scene filled her with fear and dread.

Amanda gritted her teeth and raised her wand. "I have to do something!"

Diana shoved her elbow against Amanda's arm and shook her head. "Wait! You could end up hurting them."

Lotte pointed to her table. "Uh, I think I'm in for a world of hurt right now."

The attention of the witches was then shifted to a series of monstrosities forming on each of their workstations, the results of the shockwave mixing together all sorts of potions and powders. As if the witches were stressed enough waiting for the fate of the three heroes to reveal itself from the smokey cloud, a bunch of mutant spawn had to be dealt with.

Akko especially began twitching, recalling that creating such a beast when learning about fusion magic was what forced her to take part in the Witch Hunt parade.

Finnelan readied her wand to fire a magical nullification spell to get the ordeal over with. Those creatures were pure magic, so it was common sense to use that spell.

As she aimed her spell at the forming mutants, Finnelan called out to Hannah and Barbabra. "What did you two put in your potion? There was no possible outcome like this from what I had instructed you."

Hannah waved her hands. "We didn't do anything wrong! We followed you word for word!"

Sucy finally couldn't resist the urge to smile, and sure enough, Finnelan recognized exactly what had gone on.

"What did you do this time young woman!" screamed Finnelan.

Before Sucy could answer the question, one of the abominable mutants formed from the combining potions, trinkets and powders lunged towards the witches and the spot where the heroes should have been standing.

Finnelan readied to simply fire her spell and get on with the day, but another experiment had something else in mind.

From the blinding smoke, a muscular arm belonging to that of a human male shot out and grabbed the mutant creature, forcing his fingers down its body. The mutant screamed with an extremely high pitch as the hand crushed it like a piece of fruit.

The witches luckily were more confusion than squicked by the gore. They'd seen worse.

What did catch everyone off guard though was the hand unleashing a flame that burned the mutant to ash, nothing about it a second ago remaining.

For a moment it looked like that the hand belonged to Todoroki given that the flame was his part of his quick, but the arm looked a fair tad bigger than what he had on him. It wasn't exactly Bakugou's or Deku's either, the former's explosions still distinct from the fire quirk.

Another mutant shot forward at the smoke, identifying whoever the arm belonged to as the bigger threat. And then the mouths began to drop.

From the same hand that shot out flames, ice did so as well. Todoroki was the only one who had ice powers amongst the three heroes, and his had to come out of another hand.

In any case the second mutant had been destroyed by a sharp icicle piercing whatever could have passed for its brain or core. Thus, the remaining two mutants decided to attack in a pair, desperately trying to end the figure that seemed unbeatable.

Finally as the pair of unholy creatures lunged at the smoke, a second arm, human again, made itself apparent and grabbed them both. Whatever impact was used to them blew away the smoke and revealed what was underneath. Needless to say, the revelation was for once the most shocking thing the witches had seen all year, so far at least.

In the spot where Bakugou, Deku and Todoroki where standing at moments ago, none of the three were to be found. Instead, one man in the same makeshift uniform they had been wearing had taken their place, and needless to say it was obvious what the entity was once the witches made out his physical features.

The man, or older teenager to be more exact, was quite tall, well over 6 feet. His skin tone was around the average of the heroes if the witches had to describe it. The hair was spiked the same way Bakugou's was, but the colors were white and green, divided similarly like Deku's even though his hair was only green.

Then came his face. He had Deku's freckles, Todoroki's scar on the same side he did, and Bakugou's eye colors. His expression somehow combined Deku's sense of duty, Todoroki's aloofness, and Bakugou's sheer arrogance. It seemed almost inhuman, but to be fair, his birth likely entirely was.

To confirm the suspicions of the witches, the man charged up Deku's quirk with one hand break the creature whole while another shot out one of Bakugou's explosions.

Whatever Sucy had done, had fused Bakugou, Todoroki and Deku into one being. Through magical means, a hero fusion had been created.

As the final creatures were eradicated, the Fusion faced the witches, his expression still human, but a little unusual. He somehow combined Deku's empathy, Bakugou's confidence and Todoroki's generally aloof neutrality.

The Fusion also looked like he knew something was up, but also tried to look reassuring, which was hard to do given the situation.

Akko's eye began to twitch. She hoped her Deku was still in there somewhere, or if he was truly no longer around because his mind was now merged with Bakugou's and Todoroki's, making the Fusion an entirely new person. She needed to break the silence.

"D-Deku?" asked Akko.

"Yeah!" replied the Fusion, which made Akko sighed somewhat in relief, but her concern remained.

That wasn't even getting to what Diana and Amanda suddenly felt. The Fusion replied to Deku, which didn't spell good things about to them about Bakugou and Todoroki's fate.

"Bakugou?" blurted Diana, hoping he was alright.

The Fusion glanced at her. "What?"

Amanda's eyes widened. "Wait….Todoroki?"

The Fusion then eyed Amanda, a little annoyed about being called out. "Yes?"

Finnelan snapped her fingers to grab everyone's attention as she glared at the Fusion. "Are you all three of them? Will you respond to any of the three names called?"

"Of course! I'm all three of them at once ya know." nodded the Fusion. His tone was a little condescending much like Bakugou's, but he said it in the dry manner like Todoroki would, yet his expression and intent to reassure seemed to reflect Deku's mannerisms.

He then raised an eyebrow as he was lost in thought. "But on the other hand, I guess you can say I'm neither all three of them at once. I think I'm something more."

Mouths were dropping again. At the rate that was happening, the witches would need new jaws by the end of the month.

All were shocked, but Sucy, who began laughing maniacally. The same way she did whenever she came up with a major breakthrough in her experiments. Her classmates eyed her with fear. This fusion was her creation so there had to be something unholy about it.

Finnelan's face turned red. "Explain what you've done now Sucy! You were banned from taking part in any experiments for this class and something like this is the reason why."

Sucy stopped cackling. "I've done it! I've created the perfect being! My research has lead to this beautiful being and moment."

Sucy being this happy wasn't a good sign to everyone.

Diana narrowed her eyebrows, her arrogant side was taking over in response to Sucy's boastful remark. "Elaborate on what you mean by perfect being."

The Fusion was about to take a crack at explaining, only for Sucy to silence him with a shush. "For the past few days I wanted to make something out of those stupid heroes and the crap we learn at this Godforsaken Academy. This was the natural outcome of what we've been trying to accomplish for this damn study crossover and you all know it."

Finnelan loathed having the reputation of the Academy tarnished. "Care to explain what you know better than your teachers then? You're already deep in trouble."

Sucy didn't care for that last remark. "Come on everyone! What did you think was going to bring the magical and quirk world together? Understandings? Debates? Classroom sessions that are just an excuse for our pathetic teachers to get us beaten up?"

Lotte adjusted her glasses. "Um, I only think Professor Nelson likes seeing us hurt."

"Quiet you!" screeched Sucy.

"That's not a nice way to talk about your fucking friends." frowned the Fusion.

Sucy rolled her eyes. "Oh you naive thing, but it's okay, you're still young. At least I got to you before stupid ideas like love bringing our worlds together could flourish."

Amanda, Akko and Diana turned red once Sucy eyed them as she finished her statement.

"Why are you looking at us?" asked Amanda.

Sucy looked smug as ever. "Sorry ladies, but your fairy tale ending with your useless boyfriends ain't gonna happen now that I've turned their three useless asses into something better."

Akko raised a finger. "Uh, boy…"

"Zip it lady!" cried Sucy, not letting that conversation push forward. "I've done what you three were all too cowardly to do by fusing their essence into one perfect being. I've had to make shady deals with underground Warlocks for potions, frame some Appleton boys and their parents, bribe Constanze for support and entertain a stupid pink haired scientist from Japan to create the perfect fusion formula."

Lotte bumped Constanze's arm. "You knew?"

Constanze just shrugged.

The Fusion's eyes widened at that last remark. "Was that pink haired scientist named Mei by any chance?"

Sucy looked like it was no big deal. "Eh, her nanomachines were just one piece in my recipe for the magical quirk fusion potion thing that I haven't even bothered name to name, because THIS is what matters only."

Sucy put an arm around the Fusion close and began stroking his hair, a little awkward given the immense height gap between the two. "Come here my precious son, we have revolutionized the way ordinary humans think. They pity us for our greatness!"

"Son?" blurted Lotte.

"I created him, therefore I am his mother." snickered Sucy, as the Fusion's eyes widened. It wasn't clear which of the three heroes' personalties was surfacing in regards to this bit of news.

Finnelan slapped her forehead. "There will be no adoption of experiments in this school!"

"Yeah, and we're just like a year older than the boys, won't that be awkward?" added Akko.

Sucy shook her head and stuck out her tongue. "Deku, Bakugou and Todoroki are dead, long live my new creation who was born today."

The Fusion blinked. "I'm sure they're still in me. And I'm like mentally and physically the same age they are."

"Shhh mommy's here." whispered Sucy, trying to shut him up.

Amanda crossed her arms. "So you've created the perfect guy, now what?"

Sucy grinned. "Let's see, we have a guy that has the combined strength of those three idiots and all of their quirks, what we have is the new number one hero?"

The Fusion looked ecstatic. That was the shared goal of Deku, Todoroki and Bakugou, so of course he'd look happy about it. "Number one?"

"Yes! Forget All Might! Forget that stupid Endeavor! YOU are gonna be the revolution of hero society and once they figure out it was a witch that made you, I'll be stinking rich! All my enemies will cower before me and you'll let me run my experiments wild with no one to question me!" ranted Sucy.

Hannah grabbed Barabara and whimpered. "Frankenstein has created her monster."

"Uh, I ain't so fucking sure about that last part." deadpanned the Fusion.

"Come on son, mommy created you with her experiments, shouldn't you let her do more?" questioned Sucy.

Akko pouted. "Come on Deku! That's not the reason you wanna be a number one hero."

"Yeah Todoroki, you're not gonna be better than your father if you follow her around. You're not some dog." added Amanda.

Diana closed her eyes and nodded. "And Bakugou, I know you would never want to be in association with a miscreant like her of all people. You're better than that, surprisingly."

Finnelan did not look pleased. "And Sucy, you know I can just cast a magical nullification spell to separate those three right? Can we end your shenanigans now?"

The Fusion raised his hands with a surrender position. Magically unfusing him would result in his loss of consciousness as it would be split in three. "Chill, I'm not gonna be her slave or anything."

Sucy's eyes were filled with rage. "NO! You listen to your mother. We are gonna rebel against all these chumps you here me. Mother and son against all realms of humanity!"

Diana, Amanda and Akko walked slowly over to Sucy, the three of them less than pleased that Sucy had experimented on their crushes.

"You are sadly mistaken if you think we're not going to end your foolishness at this moment Sucy." warned Diana.

Sucy covered the Fusion with her arms. "They're gonna unfuse you my child! Run for it."

The Fusion looked at Amanda, Diana and Akko, who glanced back at him.

The awkwardness resumed once more as the two parties stared at each other. What made the entire thing a confusion was that the Fusion retained the feelings he had for all three of the witches given who he was made of.

He was torn. All three of the witches looked magnificent, brilliant, alluring, and beautiful. He didn't know which one he'd want to be with as he could hear the voices inside him screaming. Each of the boys did not feel the same way about the other witches as they did about their crush to say the least.

But from the perspective of their three Luna Nova guides however, they certainly weren't torn about anything.

The Fusion was rather handsome to say the least. Tall and muscular, and he had the best parts about the heroes' looks merged into one hunk. None of Bakugou's demonic features, Deku's more childish ones and Todoroki's blankness.

That wasn't even getting into how powerful he was, which certainly was appealing to their sensibilities.

Akko took a deep breath, knowing what had to be done. "I'm sorry Sucy."

"Don't you dare!" raged Sucy.

Akko then quickly snapped forward, but rather than casting a spell, she grabbed the fusion by the arm and hugged him close, flushing his cheeks red.

"HE'S MINE!" cried Akko to the heavens.

"WHAT?" blurted everyone in the room.

Akko rubbed her face in the fusion's arms. "If he's going to be the next All Might, and I'm going to be the next Shiny Chariot, then he has to be mine!"

Diana gritted her teeth and stomped on over, and took the Fusion's free hand. "You will never achieve your unattainable dreams, and I certainly think the world cannot trust you to handle a being with such immense power. The next top witch should naturally have the next top hero supporting her efforts, not supporting childish shows."

Amanda groaned and tugged the Fusion by his shirt, causing him to sweat. "You two are so full of yourself, he's better off by my side while we show the world what magic and quirks can really do."

Sucy started waving her arms, her maddest state ever seen by the academy, restrained only by a still grinning Jasminka. "Oh no you three don't! My son will marry whoever I and my future lesbian wife will marry! None of you in this room are worthy of either title."

The Fusion gulped. "Hey, don't I get a say on whose power fantasy I get to make true?"

"NO!" yelled the witches fighting over him.

Akko took a deep breath. "Look, if I was sharing you with Andrew I'd be happy, but those two don't deserve you."

Akko could see it now. After her shows as the next Shiny Chariot, she'd head back to her lavish mansion where she'd be greeted by the Fusion and Andrew, those two stunning and glorious men. She pictured them taking her on two sides as all three of them made out, the world jealous of their power. Oh how it made her twitchy.

Finnelan rested her head on her hand. "I'm entertained for once. Genuinely. It'll make it even more glorious once I undo this mess."

Suddenly, the Fusion did the unexpected by crying.

Loud. Wildly.

He even had Deku's signature ability to flood out his eye ducts with pools of water, which made sense given what a third of him was.

Akko, Diana and Amanda let go of him, shocked and honestly a little frightened. It didn't make sense for such a so called ultimate being to be reacting this way.

"Aw, he has a sensitive side." mused Jasminka.

"Jeez that's pathetic." muttered Barbara.

"Are you kidding me?" frowned Amanda. "A man in touch with his emotions like that? It's pretty hot."

Diana looked concerned. "Do you need help with anything?"

The Fusion formed words amid his crying. "You three are fighting over me and it's tearing you apart! I can't bear to be the cause of a fucking breakup. PLEASE PROFESSOR, save their friendship by undoing my existence."

Akko clasped her hands. "But you'll be gone!"

The Fusion shed his final tears and tried to assure her. "Don't worry, I'll live on in all three of them, one hero for each of you with your friendship preserved."

Diana glanced at Amanda and Akko. "There wasn't that much in jeopardy to be honest between us."

The Fusion shook his head and grinned. "Nah, I think there's some good shit between you all, just like how you've become something great with the heroes."

Again, the witches didn't want to touch on that subject due to their mixture of pride and embarrassment. Everyone knew they'd have to drop the confession eventually however.

Finnelan charged her wand, prompting Diana, Akko and Amanda to step aside from the Fusion to give her a clear shot. "The madness ends now. Luckily for you miscreants I'm more intrigued by the success of the experiment than I am angry. I'll have to research further into this I suppose."

Sucy broke free of Jasminka's grip and tried to charge Finnelan only to be restrained once more. "NO DON'T YOU DARE TAKE HIM AWAY!"

Finnelan ignored her and fired a magical nullification spell at the Fusion, which undid the effects of the fusion potion that merged Bakugou, Deku and Todoroki into him.

Yet another blinding flash later, and the three aforementioned heroes appeared. They got up from the floor, a little dazed and annoyed but still completely intact.

Akko rushed over to Deku to help him out. "Oh my God, are you alright?"

Deku took a deep breath, and his exhaustion instantly vanished the moment he laid eyes on Akko who held him by the arm.

"I am now." he chirped.

"Yay! Good to have you back." cheered Akko.

Todoroki interrupted the moment by pulling Deku by the shoulder, staring deep into the latter's eyes with an icy stare. "Do you remember anything from the past few minutes?"

Deku blinked slowly. "Not really, just flashes of what we were doing as a fusion. It was like I was in and out."

"I don't happen to have any of your memories. Do you remember mine?" questioned Todoroki.

Deku bit his lip. "Nothing at all. Just mine."

Todoroki glanced at Amanda and back, her knowing that Todoroki was asking for the sake of finding out if Deku learned the secret about the true identity of the villain.

Amanda placed her hands on her hips and sighed before shooting Todoroki a warm girn. "Well, that was interesting. You looked kinda nice fused with the other two if I'm gonna be honest."

Todoroki bit his lip. "Acknowledged. Let's not try that again."

While everyone was recovering from the intriguing situation, Sucy on the other hand had her eyes wide with rage and anger. Her teeth were gritting and puffs of smoke were coming through her nostrils. "GIVE ME BACK MY SON!"

She grabbed Deku and Todoroki by the shirt, her eyes flaming mad. "FUSE BACK NOW. I WAS ON THE VERGE OF PERFECTION."

Akko tried to shove Sucy away. "Hey let them go!"

Amanda assisted in the effort. "I think we've heard enough out of you."

All the while, Diana was waving her hand in front of Bakugou, his expression completely blank as he stared into the great beyond.

"Professor Finnelan? I think we are about to have a situation here." noted Diana.

Finnelan walked on over to the unresponsive Bakugou. "Are you feeling unwell young man?"

Bakugou eyed Sucy and finally spoke up. "FIVE!"

All glances were on him, confused by his shout.

Bakugou then raised his hand. "FOUR!"

Diana's mouth dropped. "Is he going to do what I think he's…"

The sparks of an explosion formed on his fist. "THREE!"

"CLEAR THE AREA NOW!" screamed Finnelan as she and the other students evacuated the classroom, unwilling to find out how all out Bakugou would go.

* * *

After the incident, Bakugou parted from everyone and made his was to the guest room on his own. To think that he had been forced to share a mind and body with Todoroki and Deku for God knew how long pissed him off to no end. He didn't feel violated however, just incredibly annoyed that for a while, he and his classmates were the same being.

And he thought about the nerve of Luna Nova dubbing their fusion as the ultimate lifeform as if Todoroki and Deku weren't anything but a degradation to his ambition.

The worst part was that his memories of being the Fusion were still fuzzy, vaguely remembering showing off powers and Diana, Amanda and Akko fighting over whose puppy the Fusion would become. He wouldn't have minded being an equal to Diana once she became the number one witch, but he certainly would've never tolerated the brain dead Akko or irritating Amanda.

Speaking of the devil, Bakugou heard someone running towards him, which he quickly guessed was Diana, and was proven right once he spun around.

Diana stopped in front of him, taking a deep breath with an annoyed and disgruntled look on her face. Bakugou hoped deep down that she wasn't ticked at him, even though he was seriously considering blowing up himself and everyone a few minutes ago.

Instead, Diana formed a mischievous smile and opened her eyes, her determined piercing blue eyes. She looked like she came back from the event of a lifetime. "So, that was something wasn't it?"

Bakugou rolled his eyes. "Yeah, me being the perfect hero by fusing with Deku and Todoroki? Give me a fucking break."

Diana nodded. "Indeed, I'd rather not have the number one hero being prone to bursts of tears or dull boasting."

Bakugou shrugged. "Don't know what the fuck Sucy was snorting, but I don't give a shit at that point. I'm gonna be the next All Might...or well Endeavor...on my own damn terms."

"I suggest you pursue that path sooner than later, given that Endeavor is a less than ideal paragon for hero society," added Diana. "The magical world lacks a Shiny Chariot, but I suppose nothing is better than having a miscreant represent your kind."

"Yeah, and it's because I got fucking caught that we even have to deal with Endeavor being number fucking one!" groaned Bakugou, driving his palms into his face. "If I hadn't been weak, I'd be replacing All Might and not that flaming asshole!"

Not wanting to see him brood, Diana reached for his wrists and pulled them away from his head, glaring at him like a mother scorning his child. "Don't you dare say that! All Might went down like a true hero, the same kind you aspire to be. Are you going to cry like a puppy, or strive for that perfection I know you crave?"

Bakugou got ahold of himself. "I'm offended that you had to ask. Now I gotta double down on my shit."

Diana nodded. "It's an odious process, but you're the only one I trust that can make it."

"And you're the only one I can trust leading the future of magic, so that makes two of eh?" remarked Bakugou, unwilling to think of what would happen if Akko achieved her dreams.

She took a deep breath and tried to look as composed and elegant as possible, for she was about to say something that she would never tell anyone. "Bakugou, can I trust you?"

"Fuck yeah. I do a better job keeping secrets than those other fuckers." he said, thinking about Deku's quirk which he knew was borrowed.

Diana studied him for a good minute, but while she still remained inquisitive, did so with a flair of light admiration. "What do you think of Shiny Chariot?" she asked.

He was half tempted to answer with 'She's actually your professor Ursula in disguise' but figured that would cause more trouble than he cared to deal with at this point. He was also inclined to bluntly state that Chariot had a nice body he couldn't wait to see wrapped in a towel the next night, but thoughts about Chariot's look always now shifted to Diana's.

Thus he replied with something simpler. "She was entertaining. Kind of my first crush. Kind of a lot of boys' first crush and maybe even some girls too. Still don't know why she got shit when she had a real chance to make magic relevant again back then."

Diana began to explain. "Well, she did as Akko is doing by showing magic as a fun force rather than something…"

"Instead of something serious that could cause fucky stuff like fusing me against my will. Yeah, I remember," said Bakugou. "Why are you asking?"

"Do you remember that Chariot performance she did in Japan years ago?" asked Diana.

"It was pretty cool." recalled Bakugou.

"What if I told you that I had been to Japan before?" inquired Diana.

Bakugou instantly knew. "Holy fuck were you at that show? Like live?"

Diana closed her eyes and smiled. "You're a clever man and yes. I was there. I fear that I may have run into you, Akko, Deku, Todoroki and whoever may have been one of your classmates back then."

Bakugou crossed his arms and smirked, wanting to make a joke about fate and destined lovers, but kept the topic going. "Oh, so you do like Chariot after all?"

Diana placed her hands behind her back. "In my defense I was a child, and even if she didn't really know what magic stood for, one couldn't deny her prowess and ability to reach the masses. I mean, mastering the Shiny Rod? That has to be something."

"Not really if it chose Akko to use it." countered Bakugou, prompting both him and Diana to laugh out loud. There was a bit of unease to their emotions though, as Akko's relation to the Shiny Rod, like Deku's relation to All Might, made them feel like their dreams of being the top hero were getting slightly out of reach by undeserving rivals.

Diana looked serious again. "I am telling you this because I trust you, because if word gets out that I was a fan of Chariot, well, I'm sure you know what that could do to my reputation."

"Yeah, fucking Akko would just start thinking she met her double and get all buttery around you. Deku does the same shit with anything All Might related," understood Bakugou. "None of those other witches will hear shit from me."

"Thank you." whispered Diana.

She placed both of her hands behind her back and half smiled. Despite a whole lot of things, Bakugou really did get her at times, as crazy as it sounded to her. She noticed how close she was to him, glancing at his face that while strict, still felt rather inviting.

She took a quick breath, and without even hesitating, brought her lips up towards his cheek to give him a small kiss. Bakugou's mouth dropped and eyes widened at her gesture, as he became the third of the UA students at Luna Nova to have received a peck on the cheek from his crush.

Diana stood back on her feet and stared at Bakugou with the same inquisitive, but friendly, look she had been giving him the whole time.

He reached for the spot on his cheek where Diana had kissed, blushing.

Diana's stare turned haughty again. "If you tell anyone about this you'll regret it immediately."

"Fuck off I'm keeping my mouth shut, you're the one who shouldn't gossip for shit." deadpanned Bakugou.

"Do you really think I'm that type of woman Bakugou?" inquired Diana.

"No, and that's why I like you." smirked Bakugou, an expression returned by Diana.

She stared at him for a bit longingly, before turning around and making her way. "I'd love to stay and chat, believe me I do, but I have more studying to catch up on."

"Go ahead, the faster you become top witch...no, MAGE, the better." encouraged Bakugou.

As she left, Bakugou heard Diana hum once more, causing him to pause with curiosity before he took off himself. He spent a good minute listening to Diana's tune before the sound faded.

He pondered why he was so drawn to Diana's humming, noting it wasn't especially unique or wonderous. Sounding just like something people did when they were bored.

He still wouldn't mind hearing that bewitching tune for the rest of his life.


	18. The Starry Night

That night, Bakugou had a dream.

He was under a mystical sky, where the cosmos above were clear enough for him to make out every bright star and planet. Around him was a forest full of lush trees, flowers, and a path leading to a mystical lake.

An almost magical compulsion nudged him forward to the body of water, which radiated a sparkling glow as it reflected the light of the magnificent night sky. Tiny spirits and fairies began appearing around the path, each chirping its tune that complimented a bewitching hum that had to have come from a young woman.

The song got louder and louder as Bakugou approached the lake, beckoned further by the fairies and spirits just crying for him to continue on.

Bakugou began running, desperate to meet whatever was humming that beautiful song. A part of him felt frustrated that he had to find it though, because the last thing he wanted was something to make him feel all mushy. The other part of him wanted to feel this way.

He finally reached the shores of the lake after a short sprint, stopping short of the water to catch his breath. His eyes closed and breathing heavily, Bakugou knew that the cause of the wonderful music was right in front of him. He swallowed whatever fear was making him hesitate, and he opened his eyes, gasping when he saw the voice behind the beautiful humming.

It was Diana, singing to the spirits that danced around her. The first thing Bakugou noticed was that she was practically sitting on the water like it was solid ground. The second, was that she was naked with the exception of a prim flower crown decorating her blonde hair.

The whole scene before him was just like a mystical fantasy fairy tale about magical maidens in tune with nature and the divine. He hated those stories, but this scene could get him to change his mind.

He quickly darted his eyes and faced to the side, still captivated by her beauty even though he knew better than to spy on a naked woman. He remained in place though, practically paralyzed by the flood of emotions travelling through him.

Diana's wonderful humming stopped, and was replaced by a haughty laugh.

Bakugou gritted his teeth. She was mocking him. Gloating at his feeble nature, much like what he would do to others if he was being frank.

And yet, Bakugou felt a spirit open his eyes, causing him to glance at Diana standing on the water, walking towards him. Her confident smirk plastered her face, flaunting her attractive and naked body.

Bakugou could start to feel the last of his hesitation fading, almost reassured by Diana's pride. He wasn't going to make himself look like a coward. It was just the perfect woman he loved, what was there to fear? He was no crybaby like Deku.

Diana, finally nearing him, lit up a spell that flared in her hand and then engulfed her body, causing her to lose whatever magic was making her walk on the water. Instead, she lightly dipped into the water, not enough to wet her face and head, but everything below it.

Oh how she knew how to play a man.

She finally got up from the water as she reached the shore, just an inch away from Bakugou.

He inhaled slowly, the scent of Diana's flower crown filling his nose, as he stared in awe at her wet and naked body. Then, he focused his eyes onto Diana's. The two smiled at each other in a way that made it clear that they were done hiding their true feelings for each other.

Diana and Bakugou wrapped their arms around each other, hugging their bodies close and tight. The feeling of her bare back drove Bakugou into a state of bliss as he nuzzled Diana's cheek with his own.

Normally, one wouldn't want to let go, but all of that was cut short.

Bakugou suddenly awoke when he felt his head slam against his bedside. His eyes shot open and he quickly got up, burying his face in his hands when he realized what he had just dreamt of.

"Oh no no no no no…" shook Bakugou, pissed that he of all people could ever feel this way about someone. Sure he had a small crush on Shiny Chariot as a kid and the ever dense Kirishima for a while, but those couldn't possibly compare to what he was feeling for Diana at the moment. He was imagining himself being cute for crying out loud!

He didn't know what to think of his affections. The affections that he was denying for so long.

He felt that it betrayed the exterior he wanted to set up for himself. A Bakugou that cared for nothing other than being the best was suddenly accosted by a stupid feeling of love. Love for another girl that he was more alike than he'd like to admit. A girl who strove to be the top of her own path, unwilling to be shown up by fools and annoying idiots.

Bakugou sighed as he resigned himself to his feelings, knowing that Diana deep down felt the same. He wondered if she had those kinds of dreams about him, himself having not dreamt about a girl in an erotic matter for years.

"Tomorrow night," he whispered to himself. "Tomorrow night I'll do it."

He and the other five had denied their feelings for so long even though it was obvious everyone could see it. Pride, hesitation and uncertainty had prevented anyone from confessing, but he would have none of it anymore.

The night they would hit the hot springs tomorrow, Bakugou would ensure that his rivals and the witches would finally spit out how they felt about each other. He wasn't being sentimental or empathetic for others however, as much as he was annoyed that no one would say anything. It was driving him mad at this point.

He'd beat out the confession from Deku and Todoroki to Akko and Amanda if he had to.

"K-Kaachan?" whispered Deku.

Bakugou's eyes widened as he witnessed Deku looking at him with a worried expression from his own bed.

Bakugou gritted his teeth. "I swear to God if you were watching me.."

"No no no!" whimpered Deku. "I woke up like a second before you, after I hit MY head and then you bumped YOUR head and...and…"

There was silence between the two. A rather awkward one that Bakugou wished he would never have with anyone else, especially not with Deku.

Deku could see the gaze in Bakugou's eyes that he shared. "I..I know how you feel."

Bakugou's face turned red. "There's no way you.."

_BUMP!_

Bakugou looked up to the top bunk of Deku and Todoroki's bed to see the latter waking up after slamming his head on the bedside.

Todoroki shook his head and glanced at Bakugou, and looked down to see his suspicions confirmed by Deku as well.

Todoroki simply shrugged while Bakugou's mouth hung agape. "Ah, you guys too?"

Bakugou lit the flame of an explosion and slammed his feet on the ground. "Oh so that's it huh? I swear to God if you two were thinking about her!"

"Calm down!" commanded Todoroki. "I wasn't thinking about her, I was thinking about...her."

Deku wildly flailed his arms around to get Bakugou to stand down. "And I wasn't thinking about her or her! But you know….her."

It was painfully obvious what they all meant. They then did something they never really did together before and laugh. Laugh at the absurdity of their situation and their feelings for the witches. They never believed they would share a moment like this, but here they were.

Ending his chuckles, Todoroki simply hopped into his pillow and blanket again. "I'll try to think about it more privately."

Deku bit his lip and spoke up before anyone could fall asleep again. "By any chance guys, was it specifically the dream where she's naked in a lake with…"

"GET YOUR OWN FANTASY YOU DAMN DORK!" roared Bakugou, before instantly falling asleep. That killed anyone's mood for another dream like that.


End file.
